New oil from British North Sea expected by 2021

Nexen leads a partnership of British energy companies and services companies like Subsea 7 and Baker Hughes at the second phase of the Buzzard field. Nexen said its partners have backed a field development plan that was approved by the British Oil & Gas Authority.

First oil is expected in the first quarter of 2021.

Chrysaor, one of the partners at the field, secured the 21.7 percent interest in the Buzzard field from a $3.8 billion divestment from Royal Dutch Shell in November.

Phil Kirk, the chief executive at Chrysaor, said his company is now a leading exploration and production company in the North Sea with the acquisition, which puts about 120,000 net barrels of oil equivalent per day in its pocket.

Last week, Subsea 7 secured a contract valued at between $50 million and $150 million to help install pipelines and other infrastructure support for phase two development. Its activity is slated to begin in 2020.

Situated about 60 miles northeast of Aberdeen in shallow waters, the Buzzard field is the largest oil discovery made in the British waters of the North Sea in 20 years.

"The objective of this project is to safely develop additional reserves and bring new production on stream, supporting the goal of maximizing economic recovery in the North Sea," Nexen's statement read.