Oil and gas independents operating in the North Sea have said time is running out to get the most they can out of the mature basin.
Speaking at an Oil and Gas UK breakfast briefing yesterday, three firms highlighted the need for fiscal stability, access to infrastructure and developments to move to production faster as key issues affecting their businesses.
All three – Apache North Sea, Nexen and Endeavour International – also agreed that the UK North Sea still had great potential despite the challenges.
Endeavour chief executive Bill Transier told the audience of industry leaders at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre there needed to be easier access to infrastructure, practical decommissioning policy and a more stable fiscal environment. Since 2000, the top 20 discoveries had been driven by independents, he added.
He also said the number of small and mid-cap companies operating in the North Sea had dropped from about 140 in 2004 to about 10 now, because of a lack of capital in the region, adding: “We need to access this infrastructure before it is decommissioned or we are going to lose a lot of resource.
“There is great potential in this province we do not want to see waste away, but we need some help quickly.”
Archie Kennedy, managing director of Nexen in the North Sea, said commercial and technological innovation would also be vital to securing the industry’s future. He added it was taking too long for developments to move to production and, with future finds likely to be smaller, this was a growing concern.
Mr Kennedy said: “Time is of the essence. We are
entering a new era and it’s going to require some new ideas.
“We need to see a more sustained focus on increasing and sustaining exploration activity.”
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