2014 Among Worst Years For Oil & Gas Industry

Offshore oil and gas has witnessed its worst year in four decades.

Industry body Oil and Gas UK's annual report found firms spent and invested 5.3 billion pounds more than they sold during 2014.

Firms have announced thousands of job losses after the price of brent crude more than halved within a month late last year.

The Chancellor is meeting with industry leaders in an attempt to tackle the apparent crisis facing the industry.

Firms have previously called for more tax cuts on North Sea oil and gas prices.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, said:

“While the huge fall in the oil price has been a real benefit to the British economy, it’s been a challenge for the North Sea oil and gas industry.

“We've got record investment in the North Sea, and there’s a lot of oil still in there. We want to continue to maximise investment in the North Sea to make sure it continues to provide jobs and economic benefits to the whole of the UK. The North Sea is a great national asset and we will do everything to protect it.

“I’ve already cut taxes in the North Sea and we're now looking at what more we can do to work with industry to support investment in this important sector.” 
Tom Greatrex MP, Scottish Labour’s Shadow Energy Minister and MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West, commenting on Oil and Gas UK’s Activity Survey 2015, said:
 
“This year’s activity report highlights just how serious the situation is for the oil industry in the North Sea. It is vital to the Scottish economy and nobody can now doubt it needs support. These findings underline the need for urgent action to ensure the fiscal framework is appropriate for North Sea oil and investment – postponing action until the budget is a needless and damaging delay. If the Tories do not improve the tax regime for the North Sea, Labour will.
 
“It is also vital that the crucial reforms recommended in Sir Ian Wood’s review of economic recovery in the North Sea, which were pressing even before the oil price crisis, are now implemented as a matter of urgency. The industry need themselves to also step up to the plate, and work much more collaboratively if the UKCS is to have a sustainable future.
 
“The SNP want to rip up the Barnett formula and make Scotland entirely dependent on what happens to a volatile and declining commodity – these findings show just how disastrous that would be for pensions, schools and hospitals. Instead we need a Scottish Labour Government in Holyrood to establish a resilience fund to support critical industries in times of difficulty”