Monday 28 June 2010

Oil & Gas UK Comments on New UK North Sea Discovery

Malcolm Webb, Oil & Gas UK’s chief executive, said: “Encore Oil’s discovery could be hugely significant when compared with the average UK North Sea find which, over the last ten years, has been around 25 million barrels of oil and gas. Given that new exploration is the lifeblood of an industry which has a central role in the UK’s energy supply, it is very encouraging that the tally of new finds on the UK continental shelf (UKCS) has been added to.

“Even when significant discoveries are made, the real challenge for the industry is to engineer their economic development. The Treasury’s recent recognition of the importance of predictability in the oil and gas tax regime will have done much to restore investor confidence and encourage the injection of new capital to help recover our remaining 24 billion barrels. It is imperative that the Government continues to work with the industry to ensure not only that exploration is encouraged but that we have a fiscal and regulatory regime which allows discoveries like these to attract the investment required for development and production.”

Ends

For more information, please contact Sally Fraser on 020 7802 2404 or sfraser@oilandgasuk.co.uk