It allows for "blue" hydrogen, derived from methane, in that it means the carbon by-product can be captured. The UK plans as much as 10 gigawatts of blue hydrogen production - nearly twice Scotland's peak demand for electricity.
It is now back onto a downward path again, and the pace of that decline is for drilling firms to determine, with their investment decisions shaped by the licensing and tax regime controlled by the UK government and its North Sea Transition Authority. While Conservative ministers have introduced that hazard into planning, Labour's poll ratings make the outlook less clear.
It exports a lot, and imports a lot, but overall, OEUK has said UK production currently supplies 40% of UK oil demand and 67% of gas demand. That is one of the reasons why energy choices have become more pressing. The other lies closer to home. Rishi Sunak's former environment minister, Lord Zack Goldsmith, set out in harsh terms, as he resigned his post, the prime minister's lack of concern or priority for reaching net-zero emissions.