Monthly oil and gas production fell slightly during April, according to the late ...

Monthly oil and gas production fell slightly during April, according to the latest Oil and Gas Index from the Royal Bank of Scotland. There continue to be concerns that the industry will be unable to fully capitalise on increased investment levels, reports Tony Wood, Oil and Gas Economist with the Bank. ‘Levels of operator investment are increasing in the North Sea. However, we remain concerned that the industry may be constrained, in terms of skills and equipment, which could reduce its ability to deliver on additional investment. In turn, this could impact on the long-term competitiveness of the North Sea by increasing its costs of production relative to other locations,’ he said. April 2001 oil production fell to 2.2mn b/d, 3.4% down on the month and 10.4% below April last year. Average daily production in the 12 months to April 2001 fell by 11% compared with the 12 months to April 2000. The value of oil production in April averaged £40.2mn/d, an increase of 3.1% on the month and 11.9% on the year. Gas production also fell slightly in April. Monthly output dropped by 4.4%. Yearly output also fell by 1.9%, or 231mn cf/d. Nevertheless, average daily output in the 12 months to April 2001 was 3.5% higher than the 12 months to April 2000. Estimated gas revenues fell by 4% on the month, but were up 4.4% on the year. Combined average daily production in the 12 months to April fell by 5.1%. Combined revenues are provisionally estimated to have increased by 0.8% to stand at £56.5mn/d. Revenues are estimated to have increased by 6.8% since this time last year.