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Exploration & Production

Total discovery unlikely to stem UK North Sea decline

Total’s find in the Glendronach prospect is a major one, but investment in the UK North Sea is not high enough to sustain long-term production Total’s find in the Glendronach prospect is a major one, but investment in the UK North Sea is not high enough to sustain long-term production.
By Peter Stewart 27 September 2018 0 32694
An offshore platform in the North Sea. BP's Andrew platform in the North Sea. (BP plc)

Total’s recent major gas discovery in the North Sea looks unlikely to change the production profile of the mature oil and gas frontier, which has been in decline since 2000. 

Total’s discovery in the UK offshore Glendronach prospect in the West of Shetland region marked the biggest gas discovery in British waters in around a decade. It followed a billion-barrel oil find in the adjacent Greater Lancaster area by Hurricane Energy in 2017, leading to hopes the new discoveries may indicate a renaissance in UK North...