According to a new report, Exploiting new oil and gas fields is at odds with the UK's commitment to fight climate change.
If all the North Sea's reserves were burned, the greenhouse gas emissions would be calculated.
They said it would cause the UK to exceed its carbon budget by two-fold.
There will be a new licensing round for oil and gas.
There are 21 large North Sea oil and gas fields that have been licensed and are awaiting final approval. The amount of CO2 that would be released if those reserves were burned is the equivalent of 920 million barrels of oil. That is more than the yearly emissions of many countries.
"If the UK claims to be a climate leader, it cannot allow these new fields to start up, nor hold another licensing round," said Scott Zimmerman, lead author of the GEM report.
The prime minister says she is going to reach net zero emissions by the year 2050. The government has decided to give new licenses for oil and gas in the North Sea.
"We are going to take decisive action to reinforce our energy security," she said.
More gas fields are being opened in the North Sea. She said that they will protect the environment, deliver on their commitment to net zero and tackle climate change.
There can't be new fossil fuel projects if there is a chance of keeping global temperature rises under 1.5 degrees.
The business secretary wants to get every last drop of oil from the North Sea. According to the report, if all of the undiscovered oil and gas in the country were to be burned, it would release the equivalent of over seven billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. The UK's carbon budget for the next 14 years is less than that.
A UK government spokesman said the report was not true.
The government is committed to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050.
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