Knowledge Centre
Production
Construction
When development of the North Sea fields began in the mid 1960s, the industry had never before faced such a hostile environment. Find out more about the challenges it presents here.
The construction of oil and gas infrastructure is described here and details of the types of infrastructure built can be found here.
Production and transport
The roles performed by an offshore installation are described here and the issues associated with drilling production wells are explored here. Offshore oil is transported to shore by pipelines or tanker, gas by pipeline only. Find out more about these methods by clicking here.
Subsea
Subsea technology is allowing the UK’s oil and gas reserves to be extracted more cost effectively and in deeper waters than if platforms had to be built to access each accumulation. In 2008, 43% of UK oil and gas production was accounted for by subsea wells. The demand for subsea expertise and technology is growing around the world and in this sector, the UK’s experience has made it the global leader. Oil & Gas UK works in several areas to help ensure that subsea infrastructure is operated safely and efficiently. Please see the subsea section for further information.
Recovery rates
The factors that determine natural recovery rates are discussed here and the methods used by the industry to increase oil and gas recovery are described here.
During 2003, the focus on maximising recovery from existing fields or ‘brownfields’ rather than on discovering new accumulations increased. There was concern over industry confidence and forward investments and a wide range of opinions existed regarding what was required to maximise the contribution of the UK oil and gas industry to the economy.
The study of brownfields aimed to improve knowledge which would help define ways to increase the overall proven UKCS resource base, maximise recovery through a reduction in stranded reserves and extend the life of existing infrastructure and hence the scope for reserves realisation.
Key findings included that decommissioning uncertainties were negatively impacting market forces and needed to be addressed, that stewardship of UKCS reserves required a mechanism to determine whether field owners are fully identifying opportunities and providing a means to realise them and that new cross-industry partnerships and business models were delivering incremental value and extending collaboration in the supply chain could unlock more.
To access the full Brownfields Report – Maximising Economic Recovery of the UK’s Oil and Gas Reserves, click here.
