Can you hear it? No, neither can we. Wait, there it is. It’s just very quiet.
Quite often good news in the oil and gas sector is whispered.
Which is a shame really because there are happy tales to be told loud and proud.
Such as the announcement Scotland’s oil industry now has a brighter future for decades to come.
Why so? Why because BP has begun oil production from the refurbed Schiehallion and adjacent Loyal fields west of Shetland.
These resources were first developed in the 1990s, way back when Oasis and Blur were engaged in their Brit Pop battle.
Production began in 1998 and since then the area has offered up almost 400 million barrels of oil.
Now the all-important Quad 204 redevelopment project has been completed. This programme of work by BP, Shell and Siccar Point Energy spent billions of pounds upgrading and replacing subsea facilities.
It also created Glen Lyon, the world’s largest harsh water floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel.
With the job well done, it’s expected another 450 million barrels of resources can now be recovered, extending the area’s working life until beyond 2035.
Production will increase this year to about 130,000 barrels every day.
Meantime, production from the new Clair Ridge project is expected next year and BP will be pushing in to five UK exploration wells in the next 18 months, with another 50 development wells on the go within three to four years.
Ultimately, the aim is to double its UK North Sea production to 200,000 barrels of oil a day by 2020.
We’ve also had good news from figures that show the North Sea oil and gas sector’s spending on innovation almost trebled to nearly £16 million last year.
The funding from Scottish Enterprise supported 82 firms and delivered 111 innovation projects – with a combined value of £43 million – to develop and maintain companies’ worldwide competitiveness.
Of course, there’s no denying the industry still has a way to go before it can fully recover from its dry spell but such milestones mean it’s certainly not ‘over a barrel’ just yet.
And for anyone looking to untap a career in this sector, rejoin after a sabbatical in another industry or land a promoted post, the future is looking brighter.
For more good news why not visit s1jobs for the latest Oil & Gas vacancies?