Dorset’s South coast is expected to undergo offshore drilling next year as it could contain up to “50 million barrels of oil” says oil experts.
Wessex Exploration has joined up with the Australian firm Norwest to conduct research in the English Channel, stretching from Bournemouth to the Isle of Wight.
David Bramhill, chairman of Wessex Exploration said: “The English channel, especially around the areas of Dorset, was believed to have oil for more than 25-30 years. So it always had been our prime aspiration area”.
Wessex is an international company founded to explore and research on Wessex and Weald basin in Southern England.
Mr Bramhill said: “At the moment we are doing a lot of geological work and pure physical work and we have got some very good lead. But until you drill you never know what you could find. There is always a high chance that you could find oil in at least 2 or 3 wells when you drill 10”.
The company was given a Petroleum Exploration and Development Licence (PEDL 238) and started dilling in Sourthern Dorset in 2008.
But Mr Bramwell does not think that this discovery will help the UK economy, he said: “There is still such a demand for world oil that it will take more than a discovery in the UK to make any difference in the economy but I suppose every bit helps. You never know until you drill what you could find”.
Wessex is also doing research with major oil companies like Shell, Total and Northern petroleum.
Mr Bramwell added: “Even when you have the best technology in the world available to you, it is the drill bit that tells you the truth. The experts say potentially 50 million barrels of oil is hidden in the area. You can recover 10-15% of oil anyway so that will give you an idea of what we might be able to find”.
Listen to the interview with David Bramhill
[audio:http://www.thebreaker.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/bramhill_1.mp3|titles=David Bramhill]
