§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville)My honourable friend the Minister for Energy and E-Commerce, Mike O'Brien, has made the following Ministerial Statement.
I am pleased to inform the House that as a result of the 22nd offshore and 12th onshore oil and gas licensing rounds, I am today offering 97 offshore licences (58 of them under "Promote" terms, seven under "Frontier" terms and 32 under the "Traditional" terms) and 26 petroleum and development licences for the onshore area. The companies will have a fixed period in which to accept the offers made.
This is a very good result and demonstrates the keen interest still being shown in exploiting the United Kingdom's hydrocarbon resources.
A list of the successful companies in the rounds can be viewed on the DTI website at http://www.dti.gov.uk.