Redevelopment of Penguins oil field to bring new jobs

Hundreds of jobs are set to be created during the construction of a vessel which will be used to redevelop a North Sea oil and gas field.

Shell said between 300 and 400 jobs, mostly in Scotland, would be needed to support construction of the floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel for the Penguins field.

Once operational, the vessel is expected to support about 70 jobs.

Eight wells will be drilled as part of the redevelopment off Shetland.

The announcement will see the construction of the company's first new manned installation in the northern north sea in almost 30 years.

It will be built overseas but the UK jobs, mostly in Scotland, will be created to support the construction.

'Rising confidence'

Steve Phimister, Shell's vice president for upstream in the UK and Ireland, said the company has had a "strong presence" in that area for more than four decades.

"Having reshaped our portfolio over the last 12 months, we now plan to grow our North Sea production through our core production assets," he said.

Energy Minister Paul Wheelhouse said: "This significant investment is further evidence of rising confidence in the future of the region and it will offer a significant boost to communities across the north east of Scotland, along with boosting the wider Scottish economy."

UK Energy Secretary Greg Clark said Shell's move to invest further in the North Sea was "a sign the industry recognises there are positive opportunities for further developments".

He added: "The increase in confidence within the sector will boost jobs and growth across the UK in 2018."

The Penguins field, which was discovered in 1974, is about 150 miles north east of Shetland.