Greenpeace fined £80,000 over 12-day North Sea protest
- Published
BP said the climate change campaigners had acted in a "reckless" manner
Greenpeace UK has been fined £80,000 for breaching a court interdict during a 12-day protest on a drilling rig.
Campaigners boarded the Transocean rig in the Cromarty Firth on 9 June. It had been bound for the Vorlich oil field east of Aberdeen.
BP, which contracted the rig, said at the time the climate change campaigners had acted in a "reckless" manner.
After the court ruling, Greenpeace said it had simply been "trying to protect the planet".
Judge Lady Wolffe said she considered handing the organisation's executive director John Sauven a suspended jail sentence, but had decided to exercise "leniency".
She said: "Without Greenpeace's active support and resources, none of those who attempted to board the rig would have been able to do so."
'Wilful defiance'
Transocean had secured an interim interdict - or temporary ban - on anyone connected with Greenpeace either boarding the rig or coming within 500 metres of it.
The judge said Mr Sauven "could have ended the action at the point where it breached the order".
"Greenpeace have exhibited wilful defiance of the order and they are guilty of contempt of court." she added.
"I intend to exercise leniency and confine this court's sanction to a fine of Greenpeace."
A swimmer with a banner entered the water as part of attempts to block the rig's path
Transocean had argued that a lenient penalty could encourage organisations "less safe than Greenpeace".
Greenpeace has said it "will continue to fight to stop the oil industry from wrecking our climate".
Mr Sauven said: "We stand by our reasons for taking action to stop BP's reckless drilling, which is driving us deeper into the climate emergency.
"We will now press on with our challenge to get BP's permit completely quashed so that BP cannot drill for new oil in the North Sea and further wreck our climate".
Numerous arrests
The Transocean rig had been heading for BP's Vorlich field, 150 miles (241km) east of Aberdeen, when protesters occupied it. The protest delayed its departure from the Cromarty Firth for five days.
The Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise then shadowed the rig into the North Sea, and the group said the rig was forced to turn back towards land.
The 12-day protest resulted in numerous arrests.