There is a “serious and urgent risk” that parts of the North Sea oil industry will be abandoned unless energy companies join forces to become more efficient, the man in charge of reviving the sector has warned. Andy Samuel, the head of the new Oil and Gas Authority, told the Financial Times that companies need to fundamentally change some of their working practices if they are to keep parts of the lifeline of the Scottish economy alive. Companies have been struggling for the past 14 months with a low oil price, which has plunged more than 50 per cent since last June and now sits around $50 a barrel. In response, the government has offered companies a range of new tax breaks, but has also urged the industry to work together, appointing Mr Samuel to oversee that process . He warned that there could be a “domino effect”, where […]