New North Sea oil production begins

Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. said it started producing oil from its Cladhan field in the British waters of the North Sea, its largest project to date.

The company, known also TAQA, said it started production from the three-well field located about 60 miles northeast of the Shetland Islands in shallow waters.

"Cladhan is the third field developed by TAQA and the largest to date," Peter Jones, TAQA's managing director for British operations, said in a statement. "First oil therefore represents a significant milestone."

TAQA said it expects an initial production rate from Cladhan at around 10,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

In its latest quarterly statement, the company said it was positioning itself for a weakened crude oil market, already cutting spending by about 43 percent for the first nine months of the year. Revenue as of the third quarter 2014 was $4 billion, compared to $5.5 billion during the same period last year.

Total production as of the third quarter declined 9 percent year-on-year to 144,900 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Cladhan is one of six major projects on tap for TAQA.