US based oil company Chevron has been granted permission by the British government to begin drilling of a deep water exploration well off the west of Shetland.
This is said to be the first consent of the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for new deepwater drilling in the North Sea since the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Following the permission, the company will now start drilling of an exploratory well in the Lagavulin prospect in waters north of the Shetland isles.
DECC said that the UK government is determined to drive forward its move to a low-carbon economy and develop renewable energy sources. But this cannot happen overnight, and the fact is that in the meantime it will be dependent on oil and gas.