Oil & Gas UK, the leading representative organisation for the UKs offshore oil and gas industry, today (27 January, 2010) welcomed DECC's announcement of the 26th Offshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round.
Malcolm Webb, Oil & Gas UK's chief executive, said:
"It is extremely encouraging to see the broad range of licences on offer in this round as well as the extension of the validity of the Frontier licence to nine years in the west of Scotland area. The round provides a wide range of opportunities for companies to explore for the UK's oil and gas resources, which will be of crucial importance in the health of the UK's economy and security of energy supply.
"Oil & Gas UK's subsidiary, Common Data Access (CDA), will play a pivotal role by providing speedier and easier access to the 1,000 seismic surveys contained in its Seismic DataStore."
Mr Webb continued:
"Since the beginning of oil and gas production on the UKCS, 39 billion barrels have been extracted and it is estimated that there are up to 25 billion barrels still to recover. This 26th licensing round reflects the collaborative work of industry and DECC in ensuring new acreage is made available to companies willing to explore for that oil and gas. In that regard, over the last two years since the 25th licensing round, the industry's voluntary release of undeveloped acreage through the fallow process, together with acreage freed up as a result of first round licence expiries, has helped enormously.
"In securing a sustainable future for the UK's oil and gas sector, the industry and Government must continue working together to ensure that any discoveries resulting from the 26th round can compete for investment and be developed into producing fields."
Review all our latest
Licensing
news