Oil and gas research and information
Oil and gas have had a momentous impact upon Scotland since oil was first discovered in UK waters in 1966. Oil and gas production is a multi-billion pound business worldwide.
Oil and gas
The main sources of oil and gas in the UK are:
- Natural gas
- Crude oil and natural gas liquids
- Natural bitumen and extra-heavy oil
Natural gas
Natural gas is a mixture of hydrocarbons - mainly methane (CH4) - and other substances. It is normally found as a gas, but sometimes is dissolved in crude oil in deep underground reservoirs.
Natural gas:
- Burns more cleanly than coal or oil and many industry experts believe it can help reduce the impact of climate change.
- Produces fewer pollutants that can affect air quality, such as Nitrogen Oxides and Sulphur Dioxide.
- Is widely seen as a useful transition as the energy industry moves towards cleaner, more sustainable fuels.
The UK:
- Is Europe's leading offshore gas producer with most of its reserves being found offshore in the North Sea.
- Has a maximum remaining gas reserve of 1330 billion cubic metres (bcm).
- Of this, 1000 bcm are proven or probably economically recoverable according to Department for Trade and Industry estimates.
Sources:
Crude oil and natural gas liquids
Crude is what we normally think of as oil. It is made almost exclusively of hydrocarbons, occurs naturally in underground reservoirs, and can be pumped to the surface (land or sea) as a liquid. Crude oil is classified as having a viscosity of less than 10,000 mPa.s. More viscous oils are classed as natural bitumen and extra-heavy crude oil.
In the UK, most crude oil is recovered from offshore fields, mainly in the North Sea. BERR estimates that:
- Over two and a half billion tonnes were recovered from UK offshore oil fields between the first North Sea crude coming ashore in 1975 and 2002.
- There are an estimated 920 million tonnes of recoverable crude oil remaining.
Natural gas liquids are found in natural gas, but become liquids during processing. They include ethane, propane, butane and pentane.
Sources:
BERR: discovered recoverable reserves – oil
Natural bitumen and extra-heavy oil
These thick, heavy types of oil are formed as crude oil is degraded by contact with water and bacterial action. Because most of the lighter oils like paraffin have been lost, natural bitumen and extra heavy oil are more difficult and costly to refine.
There are plentiful reserves of natural bitumen and extra-heavy oil in the world, but they are concentrated mainly in Canada (bitumen) and Venezuela (extra-heavy oil).