Piper oilfield
Encyclopedia
The Piper oilfield is a substantial North Sea
oilfield. Oil extracted from it is piped to Scotland
, where it is refined at a purpose built refinery
on the island of Flotta
, in the Orkney Islands
.
This field was once drilled by Piper Alpha
, site of one of the world's worst oil platform
disasters in terms of lives lost and petroleum spilled.
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
oilfield. Oil extracted from it is piped to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, where it is refined at a purpose built refinery
Refinery
A refinery is a production facility composed of a group of chemical engineering unit processes and unit operations refining certain materials or converting raw material into products of value.-Types of refineries:Different types of refineries are as follows:...
on the island of Flotta
Flotta
Flotta is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying in Scapa Flow. The island is known for its large oil terminal and is linked by Orkney Ferries to Houton on the Orkney Mainland and Lyness and Longhope on Hoy....
, in the Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
.
This field was once drilled by Piper Alpha
Piper Alpha
Piper Alpha was a North Sea oil production platform operated by Occidental Petroleum Ltd. The platform began production in 1976, first as an oil platform and then later converted to gas production. An explosion and resulting fire destroyed it on 6 July 1988, killing 167 men, with only 61...
, site of one of the world's worst oil platform
Oil platform
An oil platform, also referred to as an offshore platform or, somewhat incorrectly, oil rig, is a lаrge structure with facilities to drill wells, to extract and process oil and natural gas, and to temporarily store product until it can be brought to shore for refining and marketing...
disasters in terms of lives lost and petroleum spilled.
See also
- Energy policy of the United KingdomEnergy policy of the United KingdomThe current energy policy of the United Kingdom is set out in the Energy White Paper of May 2007 and Low Carbon Transition Plan of July 2009, building on previous work including the 2003 Energy White Paper and the Energy Review Report in 2006...
- Energy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use in the United Kingdom stood at 3,894.6 kilogrammes of oil equivalent per capita in 2005 compared to a world average of 1,778.0. In 2008, total energy consumed was 9.85 exajoules - around 2% of the estimated 474 EJ worldwide total...