London: Britain's oil and gas production has risen for the first time in 15 years on cheaper extraction costs, an industry body said Tuesday, while warning of a lack of investment.
Output jumped by 10.4 percent in 2015 compared with a year earlier, Oil & Gas UK said in a report.
"Few industries could have achieved the performance improvements the UK's oil and gas industry has demonstrated over the last 18 months," it said.
"Its determination has seen the cost of extracting a barrel of oil or gas from the UK Continental Shelf cut to nearly half its cost since 2014 and a 10 percent increase in production.
Higher output from the North Sea and beyond has however been a major reason for a global supply glut that has severely dampened prices since 2014.
"Despite this good news, major challenges remain," Oil & Gas UK added.
"The supply chain has seen an average 30 percent fall in revenues since 2014 and ongoing job losses -- some 120,000 are expected to have been lost over the past two years -- are the personal cost to individuals and families across the UK," the report said.
Scotland meanwhile saw a 97-percent plunge in North Sea oil revenues in the 2015-16 financial year on slumping oil prices, official data showed last month.
Deirdre Michie, Oil & Gas UK's chief executive, added on Tuesday that exploration in the region had fallen to record lows, while "little new investment has been approved in 2016 and 2017 looks no better".
She called on governments "to vigorously champion the UK's oil and gas industry", in part by encouraging new entrants.
