§ 11. Mr. Gerald BowdenTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many of the wells drilled on the United Kingdom continental shelf have been drilled (a) since 1964 and (b) since 1979.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonUp to 12 February this year a total of 4,190 exploration, appraisal and development wells had been drilled on the United Kingdom continental shelf since 1964, of which 2,886 had been drilled since the beginning of 1979.
§ Mr. BowdenI thank my right hon. Friend for supplying those figures, which demonstrate the success of the Government's energy policy and the climate that has been created for investment and enterprise with these drillings. Do the drillings show that there has been an overall increase in the resources available beyond that which was expected and estimated earlier?
§ Mr. MorrisonDue to the considerable number of discoveries made last year, the remaining reserves recoverable—proven plus probable—will have increased by about 10 million tonnes to 1,200 million tonnes.
§ Mr. DoranDespite what the Minister said and the bright prospects for the North sea, will he confirm what last year's Brown Book figures show—that we are still producing more oil than we are finding in the North sea and that our reserves are depleting rapidly?
§ Mr. MorrisonI think that I would be right in saying that last year we produced a little less than we discovered. The figures will be announced formally in the Brown Book, which will be published in April.