UK Keeps Oil and Gas Windfall Tax in ‘Bitter Blow’ to Sector

The UK government will stick with a controversial windfall tax for North Sea oil and gas producers until the end of the decade, dismissing complaints that the levy hurts investment and jobs.

The Energy Profits Levy will be replaced in March 2030 by a new tax that only kicks in when prices are unusually high, according to the UK’s budget announcement Wednesday. The industry had been pushing for the change as early as next year, saying faster reform was needed to unlock investments and boost output.