As an addendum to my previous note, I came across this on the
Bloomberg,com website earlier today:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...0&refer=energy

Tony Blair, speaking of the U.K.'s own declining North Sea oil and gas
reserves and the subsequent future of nuclear power in that country
spelled it out in rather blunt terms.... ``We are going to move from
self sufficiency in gas to importing 90 percent of it'.

North Sea production peaked in 1999 and has been steadily falling ever
since.

Cheers,
Paul