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Wilson Announces New Lease of Life for Historic Argyll Field
| Date: | 16 Jan 2002 | | Details: | Energy Minister Brian Wilson today awarded licences to newcomers Tuscan and Acorn so they can restart production from the UK's oldest offshore oilfield - Argyll.
Argyll was famously opened by then Energy Minister, Tony Benn, in 1975, but was abandoned ten years ago when it was no longer economic to recover the remaining oil. Less than 40% of the oil had been retrieved.
Announcing the awards Mr Wilson said:
"These are exactly the kind of investments that we have been aiming for as part of our strategy, working with the industry, to extend the life of the North Sea and thus maintain production and employment.
"Tuscan and Acorn will use the latest technology to reopen Argyll and extract more of the remaining oil. Subsequently they should be able to reopen the old Duncan and Innes fields too, both of which were abandoned at the same time as Argyll. It's good to see two small new British companies, taking a fresh and imaginative look at the opportunities in the North Sea, and introducing productive new alliances with the supply chain."
In a second out of round award Wilson gave a boost to the DTI's fallow field campaign by authorising ATP and CalEnergy to start work on the 43/21a gas discovery, which has been lying fallow for the past ten years.
Mr Wilson said:
"ATP is one of the new entrants that DTI has been working hard to attract to the UK to bring work to our Fallow Discoveries. Their focused, high-efficiency approach, developed in the Gulf of Mexico, will allow them to develop the 43/21a discovery and other Fallow Discoveries, which others may not see as economic."
CalEnergy are an existing UKCS licensee.
Further good news for the future of the UKCS comes as Mr Wilson is anticipated to announce the 20th Licensing Round to PILOT later in the day. | | Contact: | Trisha O'Reilly, PILOT Communications
Tel: 020 7802 2422
Email: toreilly@ukooa.co.uk |
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For all press enquiries please contact:
Trisha O'Reilly at UKOOA Tel: 0207 802 2422 Email: toreilly@ukooa.co.uk
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