New wave of North Sea excitement

NORTH Sea oil and gas investment is set to reach a six-year peak as new players take advantage of the spiralling oil price to pour millions of pounds into exploration.

The race for the next big find should push total investment past £8.5bn with money spent on exploration and production forecast to climb 10%.

In a report out today, offshore operators association UKOOA puts the number of wells drilled this year at 22, against 32 in the whole of 2003.

UKOOA's economics director Mike Tholen said Government initiatives such as cheaper licences were driving this rise.

Up to 30bn barrels of oil could still be under the North Sea. A third of companies bidding for Department of Trade and Industry exploration permits this year are new entrants, such as Texas-based Endeavour Energy.