Statoil to invest billions in UK oil fields

12 June 2012

Posted by Neil Brunskill

Norwegian oil company Statoil ASA has announced it will invest billions of pounds in the North Sea's Mariner and Bressay oil fields as part of an agreement between the country and the UK.

The company had originally said it would pour £6 billion into exploration there, but this total has now been expanded to £18 billion over the sites' lifetimes.

It is thought that Mariner should contain between 300 and 500 million barrels of oil equivalent, while Bressay may hold 200 to 300 million barrels of oil equivalent.

After meeting with Norwegian permier Jens Stoltenberg, British prime minister David Cameron said: "The jobs and investments announced highlight how vital the strong relationship between Norway and the United Kingdom is for our energy security and economic growth."

The news could mean better prices for heating oil customers if supplies of the fuel can be boosted.

It was recently announced by Premier Oil that a new discovery of the fossil fuel had been made in the North Sea's Carnaby exploration well.

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