Europe / Caspian / CIS
Country profile: United Kingdom
| Location: | Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France |
| Climate: | temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast |
| Terrain: | mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast |
| Size: | 244820 sq. km total (Land area: 241590 sq. km Water area: 3230 sq.km) |
| Population: | 60,943,912 (July 2008 est.) |
| Languages: | English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland) |
| Government: | constitutional monarchy |
| Capital city: | London |
| Legal system: | based on common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences; has nonbinding judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Currency: | British pound (GBP) |
| Licensing: |
Country profile
The United Kingdom (UK) is an important political and economic power in Europe and the world. It has the second-largest economy in the European Union (EU) with a nominal 2005 gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.2 trillion. The UK economy grew by 1.8 percent in 2005, with growth of 2.2 percent forecasted for 2006. While the UK has been a member of the EU since 1973, it does not participate in the European single currency, the Euro. The UK is the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the EU.
However, after years of being a net exporter of both fuels, the UK became a net importer of natural gas in 2004. Government estimates also predict that the country will become a net importer of oil by the end of the decade. Production from UK oil and natural gas fields peaked in the late 1990s and has declined steadily over the past several years, as the discovery of new reserves has not kept pace with the maturation of existing fields. In response, the government has begun a three-pronged approach to address the predicted domestic shortfalls: 1) increasing domestic production through efficiency gains and the exploitation of marginal fields; 2) establishing necessary import infrastructure, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals and transnational pipelines; and 3) investing in energy conservation and renewables.
Energy production and consumption
| Oil | Gas | |
| Production: | 1 million bbl/day (2005 est.) | 84 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Consumption: | 1 million bbl/day (2005 est.) | 91 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Exports: | 1 million bbl/day (2005 est.) | 8 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Imports: | 1 million bbl/day (2005 est.) | 15 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
| Reserves: | 4 billion bbl (1 January 2006 est.) | 509 |
| Major fields: |
United Kingdom - recent news
| 16 Jan 26 |
UK: New poll: Scots want reliable energy and fair taxes for oil and gas sector Most Scots want a continued role for the oil and gas sector with fairer taxes for UK energy companies, according to a major new poll. Voters are in favour of expanding renewables while maintaining the existing North Sea industry, prioritising lower prices for households and growth in industrial jobs. Scots also believe offshore energy is the most important sector for the nation’s economy. |
| 16 Jan 26 |
UK: Europa Oil & Gas announces PEDL343 (Cloughton) Extension Europa Oil & Gas has announced that the Oil and Gas Authority (now officially referred to as the North Sea Transition Authority, (the 'NSTA')) has granted a 2-year extension to the first phase of the PEDL343 licence which holds the Company’s 137bcf Cloughton discovery. |
| 16 Jan 26 |
UK: EnBW decides not to continue the offshore wind projects Mona and Morgan in the UK EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW) has decided to not continue the offshore wind projects Mona and Morgan in the UK. The primary reason for EnBW's withdrawal is that the two projects did not receive government support through so-called 'Contracts for Difference' in the recently completed allocation round of the UK Department of Energy Security and Net Zero. |
| 15 Jan 26 |
UK: NSTA issues fines to two companies totalling £350,000 The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has handed down fines totalling £350,000 to a pair of North Sea operators as it continues to take a firm line on breaches of emissions limits and on well decommissioning. CNR International’s £250,000 penalty is for exceeding venting limits twice in the same year on the same fields, while NEO has been fined £100,000 for attempting to fully abandon a well without the required consent to undertake the work. |
| 15 Jan 26 |
UK: SSE secures 1.4GW CfD for Berwick Bank Wind Farm SSE has successfully secured a 20-year contract for 1.4GW of low carbon offshore wind power from Phase B of its Berwick Bank Wind Farm project in the UK’s seventh Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round. |
United Kingdom - more news
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