Oil & Gas UK Economic Report 2015

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ECONOMIC REPORT 2015 46
7.3 Drilling
Drilling Trends
Drilling trends across the UKCS reflect the wider
issues facing the industry and can be considered a
leading indicator of the basin’s health as a whole.
As Figure 32 shows, there has been a general decline
in drilling activity over the last decade. The rate
of E&A drilling has halved compared to a decade
ago and development drilling has fallen by about
30 per cent. This fall shows the difficulties the UK faces
when competing with other less mature provinces for
exploration capital on perceived prospectivity, costs,
materiality and alignment to portfolio needs.
There is an increasing number of drilling rigs being
stacked. As at August 2015, 16 rigs are believed to have
been laid-up while awaiting work. It is likely some will
be decommissioned as drilling programmes are cut in a
cash-constrained world.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2Q3Q4Q1Q2
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Wells Drilled including Geological Sidetracks
Exploration
Appraisal
Development
Source: DECC
Figure 32: Quarterly Drilling Performance