UKCS Terms

Oil & Gas
UKCS
Glossary

Block

Cardigan Bay

Semicircular inlet of Saint George's Channel in Irish Sea, western Wales. Bay is about 105 km long and about 56 km wide.
Central North Sea (CNS)

Oil and gas-condensate bearing province (Latitudes 55 degrees - 59 degrees).
Continental Shelf

Edge of a continent which lies under seas less than 200 metres deep.
Continental Shelf Act
Continental Shelf Convention

Ratified by 22 States and became International Law in 1964

English Channel (EC)

Narrow sea separating France and UK. It is 180 km wide in west where it meets Atlantic Ocean and narrows to 34 km at Strait of Dover in east at its junction with the North Sea.
Irish Sea (IS)

Arm of Atlantic Ocean, between Ireland on west and UK on east, and covering an area of about 103,600 sq. km. Sea is connected to Atlantic by North Channel, on north-west, and by Saint George's Channel, on south.
Joint Operating Agreement (JOA)

Legal authority between Operator, who acts on behalf of a consortium, and other licensees which sets out terms and conditions for managing each Licence.
Joint Venture (JV)

Parties share costs, revenues, assets and liabilities in proportion to their equity interest in Licence / Field.
Licence / Licensees

Licence Rounds

Map

Moray Firth (MF)

Inlet of North Sea, northeast Scotland. Bay, which is 121 km wide, lies between Duncansby Head and Kinnairds Head.
North Sea (NS)

Arm of Atlantic Ocean, between eastern coast of UK and continental Europe. Strait of Dover, with English Channel, forms southern link with Atlantic. Greatest width is about 645 km, its greatest length about 965 km, and its area about 575,000 sq. km.
Northern North Sea (NNS)

Oil and gas-condensate bearing province (Latitudes 59 degrees - 62 degrees).
Quadrant
Southern North Sea (SNS)

Gas bearing province (Latitudes 52 degrees - 62 degrees).
United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS)

NNS, MF, CNS, SNS, West of Shetlands (WoS), EC, IS, West of Britain (WoB). Other offshore areas (South West Approaches, Bristol Channel, Cardigan Bay, Rockall, Liverpool Bay, Manx Basin, Celtic Sea).
UKCS Key Dates

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Revised - - 26 August 1999