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Oil & Gas UK Education Information LeafletsFact Sheet 4 - North Sea Oil - Some Questions AnsweredHow much Oil and Gas does Britain produce? In 1998, 132.6 million tonnes of oil and 95.6 billion cubic metres of gas were produced. Production levels of both oil and gas were at record levels. In 1998 the UK was responsible for 4% of the world's natural gas production and 3.8% of its oil production.
How many Oil/Gas fields are there in production? A record number of 204 offshore fields were in production at the beginning of 1999. 109 of these were producing oil, 79 gas and 16 condensate. How many people work in the industry? About 30,000 people work offshore. However, recent research has estimated that some 300,000 jobs in the UK are directly or indirectly supported by the industry as a whole.
When was oil first produced in the UK? The first oil came ashore on 18 June 1975. The first full year of production from a UK oil field was 1976. Natural gas from the North Sea started coming ashore in 1967. How much does it cost to produce a barrel of oil? The average cost of producing a barrel of oil in the UK is estimated to be about £10, or some $15.50 at today's exchange rate. How much oil and gas is left in the UK? We cannot be sure. In the early 1970's people were fairly confident that we had about 25 years worth of oil and that it would run out by the Year 2000. However, because of advances in technology and new discoveries, we still think that we have about 25 years of reserves! Best estimates suggest over 7,000 million tonnes of oil and over 1795 billion cubic metres of gas remain. How much is there in a barrel of oil? 35 imperial gallons, or 159 litres. How much of the oil that we produce do we spill? Statistically, over the last 5 years, it amounts to an average of 0.00000267% or under 3 parts per million.
How much of Britain's energy does the oil and gas industry provide? In 1998, 96% of Britain's entire energy requirements were satisfied by the oil and gas industry. How important is the UK's offshore Oil and Gas Industry to our economy? The industry was responsible for about 17% of the UK's productive industrial investment in 1998, and about 1.5% of the UK's Gross Domestic Product. In 1998/99 the total income of the sector was £17 billion, of which about £2.5 billion was paid to the Government in tax. Oil contributed about £3.0 billion to the UK's balance of payments in the same year. Who are the world's biggest producers of oil?
Who are the world's biggest producers of gas?
How much of the world's energy comes from Oil and Gas? The world gets about 63% of its energy from oil and gas, and about 30% from coal. This is a big change from the 1940s when coal supplied 70% of the world's needs and oil and gas just 25%.
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