50yrs of black gold

Triumphs and tragedies revealed by former sailor

- BY SUE LEE

An extraordinary and epic tale of engineering ingenuity, human bravery and loss began with a simple announcement by British Petroleum.

BP revealed in October 1970 it had found “good oil by anybody's standards” in the Forties, 110 miles north east of Aberdeen.

This fired the starting gun for the North Sea scramble and when, five years later, drilling began in earnest the black gold rush was on. Oil from the Forties Field, quickly followed by other sites, promised energy security and relief from the Middle East's extortionate fuel prices.

Oil would also provide a massive boost to our economy and well-paid jobs, with wages reflecting the dangers of working surrounded by hostile seas and weeks away from home in cramped conditions.

Marine journalist Victor Gibson has written North Sea Oil: A History - Sixty Years of Triumph and Tragedy, which starts back when survey ships started looking for oil. He says: "What happened in the North Sea is an extraordinarily epic tale and it's as much about the people who worked out there as it is the engineering, the rigs and the platforms."

The subject was back in the spotlight last month with the BBC's three-part documentary series Disaster at Sea: The Piper Alpha Story, recounting an explosion and fire that killed 167 men in July 1988 on a flagship oil platform 120 miles off Aberdeen.

North Sea oil is also in the news as the Tories said they would remove all net zero requirements on oil and gas firms. BP is increasing its support for oil and gas by reducing its renewable energy investments.