NSTA Announces ‘Giant Leap Forward for North Sea Data Sharing’

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) announced a “giant leap forward for North Sea data sharing” in a statement posted on its website recently.

In that statement, the NSTA revealed that a new “data portal signposting page” had been established by eight organizations “dedicated to sharing offshore information”. The NSTA described the new page as “a one-stop shop providing easy access to North Sea facts and figures”. 

The UKCS Data Portals site was set up by the Offshore Energy Digital Strategy Group (DSG) and signposts to data from Admiralty Marine (AM), BGS GeoIndex, The Crown Estate (TCE), The Crown Estate Scotland (CES), European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMOD), Marine Data Exchange (MDE), Marine Environmental & Data Network (MEDIN), and the NSTA, the NSTA highlighted in the statement. 

“Each organization has agreed to share the information available on their individual sites in one convenient place,” the NSTA said in the statement.

“Users will be able to access and cross-refer information that will aid effective decision-making and help to ensure that the North Sea is used to its full potential and environmental rules are followed,” it added.

“From wrecks on the seabed to the movements of sharks, and the locations of wells to where carbon can be stored, the new UKCS data portals site has all the info you need,” the NSTA noted in the statement.  

The NSTA pointed out that the new portal follows a workshop run by the DSG in February this year, which the NSTA said “highlighted the growing need for access to reliable information”.

“This need is becoming more acute as more industries look to share space in the North Sea,” the NSTA said.

The NSTA noted that the site is the first iteration and added that it is expected that further improvements, including standardizing terms, will follow in later updates. 

“The North Sea is a vital resource for a growing array of UK industries which need to share information in order to make the best use of it,” Nic Granger, NSTA Chief Information and Financial Officer and Chair of the Offshore Energy Digital Strategy Group, said in the statement.

“Easy access to reliable information enables businesses to make better decisions and support the UK’s ambitions for a strong economy, energy security, and environmental protections,” he added.

The NSTA highlighted in the statement that the DSG was set up following the publication of the Digitalizing Offshore Energy Systems report, which the NSTA said “called on the oil and gas and renewables sectors to work together to use the North Sea to its full capacity and reduce emissions to meet net zero targets”. 

In a statement posted on its site back in October, the NSTA announced that the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund had awarded the NSTA GBP 107,000 ($140,003) “for a project intended to make North Sea data easier to access”. 

“The funding will be split between two workstreams, one creating an enhanced Geospatial Data Viewer which is intended to help users by bringing together datasets from multiple government agencies in one place,” the NSTA said in that statement.

“The second will create an AI chatbot to assist users in navigating NSTA’s Open Data and National Data Repository portals, with potential future expansion to other platforms. The chatbot would provide reliable responses to research queries,” it added.

“It is hoped that the workstreams, which will be assessed in April 2026, will make information more accessible to users who will be able to reach better decisions about a range of potential North Sea projects,” the NSTA continued.

The NSTA highlighted in this statement that the UK Government’s Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) funds regulators and local authorities “to trial new and innovative regulatory approaches enabling businesses to bring innovative products to the market quicker”.  

“Good decision-making requires easy access to reliable information,” Granger said in this NSTA statement.

“The NSTA and our partners in the DSG each have huge resources of high-quality data, and we are dedicated to sharing it as widely as possible,” he added.

“The North Sea is a resource which can contribute to a strong economy, energy security, the drive to reach net zero and much more, and achieving those goals is supported by these projects,” he continued.

Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said in the statement, “every day across the country new products are being invented that have the potential to transform lives and revolutionize public services”. 

“But all too often, we are held back from taking advantage of them by red tape that simply hasn’t kept pace with the scientific and technological advances,” Kendall added.

“That’s why we’re backing our regulators to work together with industry, to make the rules fit for purpose, and unlock breakthroughs that will deliver national renewal by driving our economy forwards faster, easier, and safely,” Kendall went on to state.

The NSTA highlights on its website that it licenses, regulates, and influences the UK oil and gas, offshore hydrogen, and carbon storage industries.

“We support UK energy security, drive emissions reduction from UK supplies, and help accelerate the transition to net zero to realize the potential of the North Sea as an integrated energy basin,” the NSTA adds on its site.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com