Page 8 - EurOil Week 29 2019

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Scotland offers $5mn for fourth round of decommissioning fund
SCOTLAND
SCOTLAND is making $5mn (GBP 4mn) available under the fourth round of the Decom- missioning Challenge Fund (DCF) programme and will accept bids from interested parties until September 2. e funds will help support pro- jects that support the decommissioning supply chain and market in Scotland, the Scottish gov- ernment said last week.
Paul Wheelhouse, Scotland’s energy min- ister, voiced approval of the government’s decision, saying: “Industry reports tell us that $19.1bn (GBP 15.3bn) is forecast to be spent in the UKCS between 2018-2027, with further market demand beyond this. is represents a great opportunity for Scotland’s supply chain, and I am delighted to announce this $5mn (GBP 4mn) fund.”
Wheelhouse indicated that Scotland had green-lighted the fourth round of the DCF programme with the aim of helping local com- panies “build on [their] established capabilities and internationally recognised expertise, such as inwellpluggingandabandonmenttechniques.” He added: “Decommissioning North Sea infra- structure will help Scotland’s supply chain gain an even higher share of North Sea projects and
capitalise [on] global market opportunities by exporting knowledge and experience.”
Popular programme
The programme has been very popular with Scottish businesses, the energy minister added. He attributed this popularity to the fact that decommissioning funds had been used to “sup- port innovation in the supply chain, [ensure] further cost reduction and improve the recog- nised skills of the Scottish workforce.”
Scotland launched the rst round of the DCF in February 2017 and made more than $12.5mn (GBP 10mn) available under the first three rounds of the programme. It has used those funds to support decommissioning projects in Aberdeen, Dundee, Hunterston, Kishorn, Leith and Shetland.
e global decommissioning market is set to be worth more than $80bn (GBP 64bn) over the next decade.
UKCS projects will account for nearly 25% of thetotal,or$18.75bn(GBP15bn),witharound 888,000 tonnes of drilling platforms and more than 1,465 wells slated for recycling, reuse or disposal. ™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 29 25•July•2019