The GOV.UK collection titled ‘Oil and gas: OPRED communications, 2026’ was published on 20 January 2026 and, as of 24 July 2026, remained a live record of notices issued by the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning to offshore stakeholders. It is less a single announcement than a running file of operational communications that regulated operators are expected to follow. (gov.uk) Across the documents listed by 24 July, the recurring subjects are UK Emissions Trading Scheme administration, environmental reporting, offshore pollution preparedness and marine noise coordination. Read together, the page operates as a compliance noticeboard for operators that need to keep pace with deadlines, templates and regulator expectations during the year. (gov.uk)
Most of the 2026 traffic on the page concerns UK ETS free allocation and reporting. OPRED circulated a UK ETS Authority notice on 20 January about the new Activity Level Report template and the 31 March 2026 ALR deadline, then followed on 26 February with instructions for operators needing a manual template where new sub-installations meant the standard file could not auto-populate. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) That sequence continued on 20 March with webinar invitations for Stage 2 free allocation applications, on 1 April with the opening of Stage 2, and on 2 and 16 June with further guidance and a final reminder before the 30 June 2026 deadline. OPRED and the UK ETS Authority were explicit that operators would only be eligible for free allocation in the 2027 to 2030 period if both stages of the application were completed. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
Stage 2 was not presented as a routine filing exercise. According to the 1 April UK ETS Authority communication, operators were asked to confirm whether they wished to proceed with the application, identify any UK CBAM sub-installations, and state whether COVID-affected scheme years should be excluded from the historical activity level calculation for the 2027 to 2030 allocation period. Offshore installations were told that their sub-installations would be treated as non-CBAM. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) OPRED’s supplementary note issued the same day then set out the workflow inside METS, including the option to withdraw an application, the requirement to complete the ‘FA_Application’ sheet, and the instruction to contact the regulator if errors were identified before submission. For operators, the message was practical rather than abstract: the workflow, the supporting spreadsheet and the regulator’s review all had to align. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
The documents also show OPRED using the page to tighten data quality. The supplementary guidance warned that some Stage 1 baseline data reports would need correction before Stage 2 could proceed, and said corrected data still had to be submitted before the 30 June 2026 compliance deadline. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) Separate UK ETS communications dealt with accuracy at a more technical level. The 20 January notice reminded operators that monitoring methodology plans should use the highest achievable accuracy unless technical infeasibility or unreasonable cost could be demonstrated, while the 26 February note explained how to populate manual ALR templates for new heat, fuel or other sub-installations. OPRED also said it would continue to challenge ineligible heat claims during reviews, inspections and enforcement activity. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
Outside UK ETS, one recurring issue was the Environmental Management Systems annual public statement required under OSPAR Recommendation 2003/5. OPRED first requested the 2026 statements on 15 April and then issued an urgent reminder on 23 June, with both notices setting a submission deadline of 1 July 2026 for statements covering activity in the 2025 calendar year. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) The wording matters for well and installation operators on the UK Continental Shelf. OPRED said operators that had carried out no offshore operations in 2025 still had to respond by email, and that statements sent to the regulator would be published unless the organisation asked otherwise, although the statements would still need to be made available on request. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
The page also carried operational notices beyond emissions accounting. On 6 May, OPRED and the Marine Management Organisation issued a formal call for information on planned impulsive noise activities affecting the Southern North Sea Special Area of Conservation during winter 2026 to 2027, defined as 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027. The request covered activity within the site or activity with an effective deterrent range overlapping it, and said the information would be used to forecast underwater noise and decide whether enhanced monitoring or coordinated management was required. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) Earlier, on 30 January, OPRED reminded responsible persons under the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation Convention) Regulations 1998 to provide evidence on trained oil spill response personnel and 2024 exercise activity. The notice said failure to provide the information by 30 January 2026 could result in further inspection activity by the department. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
As of 24 July 2026, the latest addition to the page was a one-page update confirming that new F-gases had been added to the EEMS database for the AtmosHalogenInst return, with operators instructed to contact OPRED if historic returns needed amendment. Between the technical notices, the page also recorded a leadership change: Paul van Heyningen was appointed Interim Director of OPRED with effect from 7 April 2026 to cover Tom Child’s parental leave. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk) Taken together, the 2026 collection shows how OPRED communicates when the issue is less about announcing a new policy than about directing implementation. The notices tell offshore operators what must be filed, when it must be filed, which template to use and where the regulator expects evidence to sit if questions arise later. (gov.uk)