Westwood Insight – The evolving corporate landscape on the UKCS in Oil & Companies News 02/04/2026 On 30 March, the merger of NEO NEXT with TotalEnergies UK completed, forming NEO NEXT+. The merger is the latest phase of growth for NEO Energy, since being established in 2019, and follows the merger of Repsol’s UK business in July 2025. NEO NEXT+ becomes the largest UKCS company based on 2026 net production, accounting for 22% of the total forecast (Figure 1). Due to the current near-term decline of its production, the company ranks as the second largest based on net remaining reserves, behind Adura, the Equinor UK and Shell UK joint venture. This landmark deal highlights the emergence of UK focussed players, replacing the dominance of the Majors. In 2014, the five largest companies in terms of remaining reserves were all Majors – Shell, BP, Total, ConocoPhillips and Chevron – with Apache occupying sixth position. These six companies, accounted for 44% of the UKCS remaining reserves. Later in 2014, the oil price crashed and this started a shift in strategy for many companies. Some Majors, particularly the US companies, rationalised their portfolios to more core regions and utility companies reduced their exposure to the revenue volatility of the upstream sector. By 2020, a new generation of companies had emerged in the UK, backed by private equity and private financiers to build position through acquisitions from portfolio rationalisation. BP, Shell and Total (now TotalEnergies) remained in the top six, but Chrysaor (now Harbour Energy), Equinor and Ithaca Energy replaced ConocoPhillips, Chevron and Apache, with the six companies accounting for 48% of remaining reserves. In 2026, for the first time in decades, only BP remains as a Major within the top six companies on the UKCS. Since 2014, the Majors’ direct share of UKCS reserves has fallen from 52% to 16%. The mergers of significant players in the UK now means that the top six companies, Adura, NEO NEXT+, Ithaca Energy, BP, Harbour Energy and Serica Energy, account for 80% of remaining reserves. Four of these six companies are focussed on UK portfolios to drive their businesses, with only BP and Harbour Energy holding international portfolios. The notable absentee from recent mergers or significant M&A activity has been BP. The British Major has remained a constant presence in the top ranked companies, with c. 12 – 15% of UKCS reserves. The total number of companies holding reserves on the UKCS has also fallen drastically. In 2014, there were 74 companies holding reserves, but by 2018 this had fallen to 63. Today, only 34 companies remain, reinforcing the extent of consolidation now characterising the basin. What is driving the shift The changing corporate landscape is being driven by fiscal, political and strategic forces. The Energy Profits Levy has reduced the basin’s competitiveness within global investment portfolios meaning investment in oil and gas opportunities has moved overseas. Other companies have paused investment due to fiscal terms and project sanction uncertainty. In a market where portfolio divestment is challenging, mergers and incorporated joint ventures allow companies to reduce direct exposure and operational footprint in the UK, while retaining ownership of an autonomous entity. An important driver has also been tax efficiencies. Company consolidation offers opportunities to optimise utilisation of tax positions with revenue streams. In a high‑tax environment, the