The UK Government has awarded the first licenses for oil and gas exploration west of the Outer Hebrides.

French Oil Giant, Total has been awarded 11 blocks west of Shetland in what has been called one of the UK’s largest ever licensing rounds.

EnQuest has received recognition for its success in extending the life of one of the North Sea’s older assets.

A corroded pipe on a North Sea platform which caused a potentially explosive leak was flagged in an inspection as early as 2009.

Odfjell Drilling has taken delivery of Deepsea Aberdeen semisubmersible drilling rig from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in Korea.

Calgary-based Talisman Energy has said it may suffer writedowns on its UK North Sea assets in Q4 due to battling production efficiency and cost issues on its assets in the basin.

Waypoint Leasing, Irish based helicopter financier, has reached an agreement with First Reserve, the largest global private equity and infrastructure investment firm exclusively focused on energy, to acquire a portfolio of 31 in-demand, new technology helicopters.

The gigantic Johan Sverdrup field, described by Statoil as one of the most profitable industrial projects in North Sea over coming decades, will provide enormous value, the company has said.

Shell has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) Norway to use Transocean Barents to drill a production well at Ormen Lange, in the Norwegian Sea.

Apache North Sea Ltd.