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Tern oilfield

UK oil field

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ12718942 ↗
Source-derived summary

Platform Name - Tern Alpha.

The Tern oilfield is an oilfield situated 169 kilometres (105 mi) north east of Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland, in block numbers 210/25a.

History

The Tern field was discovered in April 1975 by well 210/25-1, drilled by semi-submersible rig Sedco 135G in a water depth of 167 metres (548 ft). It started production in 1989. Until July 2008, the oilfield was operated by Royal Dutch Shell and licensed by Shell/Esso. On 7 July 2008, it was purchased by TAQA Bratani, a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, along with the Eider, North Cormorant, Cormorant Alpha, Kestrel and Pelican fields and related sub-sea satellite fields.

Reserves and geology

Estimated recovery of Tern oilfield is 175 million barrels (27.8×10^6 m3) of oil. The oil has a gravity of 34°API.

Structurally, it is a triangular uplifted block of the Brent Group bounded by NNW-SSE and NNE-SSW trending faults and sealed by overlying Kimmeridge Clay (the dominant source rock, with debated contributions from the much deeper Old Red Sandstone) and Shetland Group mudstones.

Tern oil platform

The Tern oil platform is a steel jacket production and drilling platform. It was built by RGC Offshore at Methil yard and was installed in May 1988.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Tern oilfield” is uK oil field. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Tern, oilfield and field, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1975, 1989, 2008, 1988—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. For this dossier, Tern, oilfield and field is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “uK oil field” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q12718942. Authority coordinates are 61.333, 0.833. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1975, 1989, 2008 and 1988.

Critical limits

A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

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  2. Expand the search: follow Tern oilfield primary sources, Tern oilfield archive and Tern research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Tern oilfield” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.