The company said it had concluded that its $200 million exploration drilling plan was 'not commercially competitive' compared with other opportunities on the horizon.

"Following a holistic review of its exploration portfolio, Equinor has concluded that the project's potential is not commercially competitive compared with other exploration opportunities in the company,'' said Equinor Australia company manager Jone Stangeland in a statement.

In December, Equinor was granted environmental approval to drill 372 kilometres south of the Nullarbor coastline, despite protests from environmentalists and boardrider clubs, such as Ulladulla, Culburra Beach and Werri Beach, who all took part in the national day of action on Saturday, November 23.

"When I first heard of Equinor's decision [to abandon their plans], there was a huge sense of relief - which was followed by a sense of empowerment," Ulladulla Boardriders Club secretary Adrian Hellman said.

"It's great to see all those coastal community groups have a voice that's been listened to - I know all us here in Ulladulla are buzzing

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"Equinor came out and said their plans weren't viable but I think they knew it wasn't worth the hassle in the long run, as there would be so much public backlash.

"A real bonus I took from it was the younger generations making a stance in what they believe in - it's all about looking after our planet now and in the future.

"In the same regard, I'm not the biggest fan of social media but can see how powerful a tool it can be in a situation like this.

"At the end of the day, this is bigger than surfing as it affects all Australians and our beach culture - which involves maintaining our pristine coastlines for generations to come."

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While Hellman, who credits individuals such as Monica Mudge, Heath Joske and Sean Doherty for their involvement in the Fight for the Bight campaign, he knows there is still plenty of work to do moving forward.

"As an environmental scientist with, I've worked with plenty of battery metals over the years," Hellman, who's been working on the Clarion Clipperton Zone Deep Green metals project in San Diego, said.

"In today's world, we don't need to be investing in oil and coal but rather making a shift to electric vehicles and renewable energy.

"In this particular regard, Australia is falling behind but hopefully this Equinor situation acts as a catalyst of change and reduction in that type of energy production.

"I'm passionate about educating people about the negatives of mining and drilling - this Equinor victory is great but we need to continue to work as a global community.

"In the past, Australia has been known to do their own thing but now's the time to put the world first for a common purpose - which is giving tomorrow's population a sustainable environment."

Equinor, which had planned to drill at a depth of 2.5 kilometres, follows in the footsteps of BP (2016) and Chevron (2017) to abandoned drill plans into the South Australian Marine Park.

Equinor's announcement comes shortly after the proposed Stromlo-1 well site, in water more than 2.2 kilometres deep and nearly 400 kilometres off the South Australian coast, was granted environmental approval by the federal offshore petroleum regulator.

The Wilderness Society launched legal action challenging the decision last month, arguing opponents had not been properly consulted.

Equinor's own modelling showed that a worst-case scenario oil spill in the bight would see oil stretching as far west as Albany in Western Australia, to Port Macquarie in New South Wales.

The South Coast's stance on this matter dates back to September when the Shoalhaven City Council became the first local government area in NSW to oppose Equinor's proposal.