Scores of jobs could be created after approval for plans to explore a new gas field off the East Anglia coast.

Petro-chemical giants Shell and Esso are involved in a �150m development of the Carrack field.

They hope the area will be able to produce 160 million cubic feet of gas a day for the next 20 years.

Approval for exploring the gas field was given by the government on Thursday.

Carrack lies in a relatively remote area, 120km north of Bacton off the north Norfolk coast.

Its gas reserves will be exported via an 85 km pipeline to the existing Sole Pit Clipper complex, north of Lowestoft, in Suffolk, and from there to the Bacton gas terminal.

The field is expected to be in production from December 2003.

As part of the development, a �40m contract for platform construction has been awarded to UK fabricator SLP Engineering of Lowestoft.

A �34m contract for the 85km pipeline construction has been awarded to Allseas Marine Contractors, with Corus of Hartlepool manufacturing the pipeline material.