§ Mr. David Howellasked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the current estimated long-run marginal cost of natural gas supplies from the North sea.
§ Mr. Peter WalkerThe question of the long run marginal costs of natural gas supplies from the North sea is complex and uncertain, since it depends in part on the terms of contracts yet to be negotiated and on the working of escalation clauses of present and future contracts. However, the cost of gas imported from the Norwegian sector of the North sea, being a price established in international competition, is generally agreed to be a convenient indicator of both the current and potential value of gas. The average price paid in the first nine months of 1983 is shown in the "Overseas Trade Statistics" as about 24.6p per therm.