 A computer generated image of the Clair platform |
Work on laying a pipeline which will bring the first oil ashore from a field west of Shetland is set to get under way. The link will connect BP's Clair field with the Sullom Voe oil terminal.
The largest undeveloped oil and gas field on the UK continental shelf in the North Sea lies 45 miles west of the Shetland Isles.
It has been forecast that the �650m development of the field could create 1,000 jobs.
A new oil and gas platform will extract more than 250 million barrels of oil from its reserves.
Work on laying the 70 miles of pipeline which will bring some of that oil ashore is due to begin on Tuesday.
Covered over
A state-of-the-art ship, the Solitaire, will be used in the operation, which is expected to take about three weeks to complete.
To minimise disturbance, the pipeline will not be dug into the seabed.
It will only be covered over in areas where it could pose a threat to trawlers.
The Clair field is due to begin production late next year.
It was discovered 24 years ago and is thought to have deposits of up to six billion barrels of oil.
It lies in up to 150 metres of water and had long been thought of as difficult to develop before technical advancements made the project viable.
One-Minute World News 
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