Marine Bill White Paper – Offshore Oil and Gas Industry Response

The UK Offshore Operators Association (UKOOA), the representative body for offshore oil and gas producers, has welcomed the underlying principles of the Marine Bill White Paper, in particular the commitment to secure the right balance between environmental, social and economic objectives.

UKOOA states it also supports, in principle, the concept of a new UK-wide system of marine planning as a means of providing greater certainty to business planning.

However, the Association is concerned that the new licensing system for marine developments should not introduce delays to government approval for new offshore oil and gas exploration and production projects.

Chris Allen, the UKOOA director responsible for environmental issues, said: "Our ability to maximise recovery of the UKs indigenous oil and gas reserves must not be compromised. There is still potentially up to 25 billion barrels of oil and gas to recover from beneath the seabed around the British Isles. These are precious volumes which could support the UK's oil and gas needs for many years to come."

The offshore oil and gas sector does not have a significant impact on the marine environment and has progressively reduced its discharges and developed technologies which have reduced its overall environmental impact.

Exploration and production methods have been refined to the point where, if justified by the need to exploit a significant hydrocarbon reservoir, operations can be carried out in environmentally sensitive areas. Options to achieve this include not discharging potentially harmful waste streams or accessing the reservoir by directional drilling from a remote location. The most appropriate method will be selected through the Environmental Impact Assessment process.

UKOOA will review the White Paper in detail and give its considered response in due course.

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Posted 19/03/07

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