The head of the North Sea Transition Authority has said net zero is not simply a "soundbite" but presents "real, very significant commercial benefits" to the sector.
Stuart Payne made the comments after Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch pledged to lift the "burden" of net zero from the NSTA and task it with maximising oil and gas production instead.
Mr Payne said around half of the £100billion expected to be invested in the North Sea over the next few years will be in greener initiatives like carbon capture and storage and floating wind.
He told the BBC it was "not a good thing" for his organisation to be treated like a political football and that "how we talk about this industry" is important.
"The net zero opportunity for the UK is not something that is a platitude or a soundbite," he added.
"There are real, very significant, commercial benefits for the UK from the projects around net-zero."
Badenoch is due to speak at Offshore Europe later, and has suggested she would rename the NSTA the "North Sea Authority" to represent a shift in focus away from net zero and transition.