OIL giant BP has said that an oil spill from a North Sea installation is heading away from land after a leak led to production on the Clair platform being halted.
The company said a technical issue on Sunday morning with the system that separates the mixed production fluids – water, oil and gas – led to a quantity of oil being released into the sea.
It said the leak was stopped within an hour and production on the Clair was halted. It would remain offline until the cause of the leak was investigated.
Oil was still visible on the surface of the water and was being monitored, but BP said it appeared to be moving north. It did not reveal how much fuel had escaped from the platform, 46 miles west of Shetland.
The company said it believed that allowing the oil to disperse naturally at sea was the best way to deal with the spill, although contingencies for other courses of action were being prepared.
Oil spill and environmental experts from BP, Oil Spill Response Limited and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy have been working to assess any potential environmental impacts and to agree the best way to respond.
BP said in a statement: “The release was stopped within an hour once the issue had been identified and Clair production was taken offline.
“We are investigating the cause of the technical issue and the field will remain offline for the time being.
“At present, we believe the most appropriate response is to allow the oil to disperse naturally at sea, but contingencies for other action are being prepared.
“Oil has been observed on the sea surface and we are monitoring its movement. Both direct observation and oil spill modelling indicate the oil to be moving in a northerly direction away from land.”
The volume of oil released had not yet been accurately assessed and work to determine the quantity was being carried out.
Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said the method being used by BP was the one least likely to cause harm to a nearby important marine habitat.
“The oil residue, about 55km off the coast of Shetland, is moving away from the shore and, as such, there is a low risk to bird species at this time of year,” she said.
“The nearby Faroe-Shetland sponge belt marine protected area is home to deep-water sponges 400-600 metres below the sea surface.
“Marine Scotland have advised that allowing the oil to weather naturally is the least harmful option for this internationally important marine habitat.”
WWF Scotland director Lang Banks said: “It’s disappointing BP have been unable to provide an estimate of the amount of oil spilled yet feel able to say they are happy to leave it to disperse naturally.
“In the interests of protecting their staff and the marine environment, serious questions need to be asked about how this spill occurred. Until those are answered the platform should remain out of operation.”
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