The University of Aberdeen hosted the launch of the Subsurface Task Force (STF) at an event that took place at the Science Teaching Hub this week.
The independent advisory group aims to promote the responsible use of storage and energy resources to ensure energy security, reduce emissions and deliver societal and economic value.
Professor John Underhill, Director of the University’s Centre for Energy Transition and STF member, said:
“It was a privilege to host the Subsurface Task Force, which is focused on tackling the challenges of energy security, equity, environmental sustainability and climate compatibility.
“The STF’s priorities include geological storage, decarbonising the oil and gas industry and the skills and training needs to deliver the energy transition.”
The Subsurface Task Force’s (STF) purpose is to promote responsible use of storage and energy
resources to ensure the UK’s energy security, reduce emissions and deliver societal and economic value.
It was relaunched at an event hosted by the University of Aberdeen yesterday (15th May), ahead of a major conference being held in the city, the Energy Geoscience Conference.
The body has been established as a natural evolution of the Exploration Task Force which was established in 2015 with the aim of maintaining exploration and appraisal activity, producing insightful policy papers recommending continued investment in the UK upstream sector.
While the STF continues to support lower-emissions oil and gas exploration and production activity in the North Sea, it increasingly focuses on carbon capture and storage (CCS) and gas storage projects. Last year, it collaborated on a report containing proposals to support the growth of CCS to help the UK meet emissions reduction targets.
The STF’s three priority areas are geological storage, domestic oil and gas, and subsurface skills, with a primary focus on early-stage activities. These include screening, exploration and appraisal of storage and hydrocarbon resources, and spatial planning to ensure efficient use of offshore acreage.
The group will also play an important role in identifying future opportunities, for example, hydrogen storage, as well as geothermal energy production. In addition, it will soon publish a report into the expected demand for geoscience skills as the energy transition gathers pace, along with several recommendations for meeting those requirements.
Members are drawn from a range of stakeholders, including exploration and production and CCS companies, trade associations, regulators, technology developers, supply chain companies and academia.
The STF has broadened its membership by attracting additional CCS industry representatives and other users of the seabed.
Visit www.subsurfacetaskforce.org.uk/ for more information.