§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on North Sea oil and how long it is estimated the reserves will last; what percentage of the UK's oil requirement comes from the North Sea; and how many jobs in Scotland depend on the North Sea oil industry. [26610]
§ Mr. WilsonNorth Sea oil has been a success story for the UK and the Government are determined, in partnership with industry through PILOT, to ensure its continued success. Detailed estimates of oil reserves on the UK Continental Shelf are given in the Brown Book (Development of UK Oil and Gas Resources 2001). The extent to which these reserves might be produced depends on a number of factors, including prices and costs relative to other oil producing areas. It is therefore difficult to make accurate predictions, but if all the discovered oil reserves given in the Brown Book were to be developed they represent some 11 years of production at rates in 2000. If in addition, estimates of as yet undiscovered reserves are also considered, UK oil reserves represent between 13 and 29 years production, although the upper estimate is unlikely. In practice, production levels will fall and reserves will last longer. Indeed, a PILOT target is to produce 3 Mboed (million barrels of oil equivalent per day) in 2010 against about 4.5 Mboed in 2000.
About 70 per cent. of UK oil production is exported and different grades of oil imported, so that UK crude accounted for some 46 per cent. of refinery throughput in 2000.
UKOOA, the offshore operators association, have estimated that some 118,800 jobs in Scotland depend directly and indirectly on the oil industry.