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The Petroleum Industry in the Firth of Forth


The Firth of Forth estuary separates Edinburgh and The Lothians from the Kingdom of Fife. It continues to play an important role in the Oil and Gas Industry of Central Scotland. Past efforts to explore for hydrocarbon resources were of little success, however the estuary still provides important site for the industry today.


Past Petroleum Exploration


The Firth of Forth estuary lies within the Midland Valley basin – a deep sediment filled depression that stretched across Central Scotland below out feet. From a very early stage, the rocks filling the basin were thought to contain accumulations of oil.  It is thought that the first commercially-extracted oil was produced in West Lothian when James Young opened a distillation plant in Bathgate in 1851 (map Locality 1). James Young, born in Glasgow, is now regarded as the founder of the oil industry as his pioneering experiments on distilling oil from rock led the way for commercial production the World over. The accessible oil shales of Lothians were quickly depleted, and oil imports from the USA combined with failed wells in Midland Valley caused a stall in the industry here during the early 20th Century.


Geologists examine Carboniferous sands in the field – a potential hydrocarbon reservoir.

With the onset of the Second World War, onshore exploration in the UK intensified and the first conventional oil field was discovered in the Midland Valley. Named the Midlothain Field, around 30,000 barrels of oil were produced between 1937 and 1960 from this field located below what is now SE Edinburgh and Gorebridge (map Locality 2). The reservoir targeted was the Binny Sandstone, which is also an important building stone in Edinburgh (see the previous Blog post). A number of other wells drilled in Lothians and Fife yielded oil and gas shows, but no commercial volumes.


Map showing the main localities discussed in the text. Shaded areas are currently held exploration licences.

With the discovery of large volumes of oil and gas in the North Sea in the late 1960s, efforts for exploration in the Firth of Forth area waned. Conoco drilled a well in the Firth (well 25/26-1) in 1990. The well was located approximately midway between Gullane in East Lothian and Leven in Fife. Despite finding oil and gas within Carboniferous reservoirs, the oil was of poor quality and the discovery was considered uneconomic to produce.


Industry Activity Today


Today, there is a renewal of exploration interest in the Firth of Forth area. With declining production in the North Sea Fields and recent technological advances in extracting oil and gas from tight poor reservoirs. Companies hold exploration licenses over much of Clackmannanshire, Stirlingshire and West Lothian (shaded areas on map). Companies are targeting Coal Bed Methane and shale gas.


A tanker enters the Forth. Viewed from Inchcolm Island.

It is not only exploration and production that the Firth of Forth gives the oil industry. It is common to see tankers and oil rigs in the water throughout the year. At Grangemouth there is a large petrochemicals plant that produces products from hydrocarbons (map Locality 3). The plant recently received a tanker-load of shale gas from the USA. Controversial given that the company is hoping to produce shale gas central Scotland also!


Evidence of the oil industry at work in South Queensferry.

Other tankers arrive in the Forth of Forth to be loaded with oil and gas for export around the World. At Braefoot Bay in Fife gas is piped direct from the North Sea, converted into ethylene (important product for the petrochemical industry) and then loaded onto tankers and gas carriers for markets in Europe and the USA (map Locality 4). Across the Firth at South Queensferry, Hound Point is an oil terminal run by BP (map Locality 5). It loads crude oil onto tankers direct from the Forties Oil Field (located over 200 km offshore). The buried pipelines between the storage tanks and the loading terminal are evident across the Dalmeny estate (see photograph).


Kayaking in the Firth of Forth offshore Aberdour, Fife. An oil rig is seen in the distance.

Most recently, the oil industry has been more evident than ever in the Firth of Forth with the addition of a number of oil rigs being moored. The appearance of the rigs (I counted five last time I drove along the Fife coast) is related to a reduction in the amount of drilling in the North Sea. When not in use, companies ‘park up’ their rigs in safe sheltered waters until they are hired again. Unfortunately, with such a low oil price currently, and therefore limited drilling activity, we may see some more of these impressive structures in the coming months. See some beautiful footage of the rigs here.


'Après Geology'


Many interesting features of the industry can be seen from South Queensferry and Cramond, located to the West of Edinburgh:

  1. The Maid of the Forth Boat Tour, Hawes Pier, South Queensferry: This boat tour is an excellent way to see some of the modern aspects of the petroleum industry in the Firth of Forth. Get up close to the Hound Point and Braefoot Bay terminals.

  2. The Three Bridges, Newhalls Road, South Queensferry: After a walk east along the front in to Dalmeny Estate (where you can observe Hound Point from), I recommend this geat place for an outdoor pint and some fish and chips overlooking the Firth of Forth. Until very recently, it was known as ‘The Two Bridges Inn’. However, the addition of the new Queensferry Crossing has resulted in the recent name change!

  3. The Cramond Inn, Cramond Village: A short drive (or beautiful cycle) form South Queensferry is the village of Cramond. The Cramond Inn is easily one of the best pubs in the Edinburgh area (and likely one of the cheapest!) Enjoy a cosy pint by the fire inside, or an outdoor drink in the sun overlooking the firth and the moored oil rigs.  

Happy Exploring!
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