One of the UK's leading oil industry leaders has warned that action must be taken now to safeguard the sector in the North Sea or the industry could die out within the next decade.
Sir Ian Wood was speaking ahead of Thurdsday night's Oil and Gas Awards and is urging fellow industry leaders and the Government to work together now to tackle the difficult challenges and pressures facing the future of North Sea oil exploration.
He says a long term approach has to be taken to look ahead to the next 30 - 40 years and investigate how the recovery of oil from the North Sea can be maximised.
It's estimated there could be as much as 25 billion barrels of oil still left in the North Sea, but that figure could be as low as 12 billion.
Sir Ian believes the difference between the best and worst case scenarios is massive for the UK economy, jobs, technology opportunities and the overall future of the North East of Scotland.
Sir Ian told STV News: "It is going to be a real shock in the next five to ten years when people suddenly see the end coming. We have got to step up exploration.
"Exploration has fallen down right now. If you have got four or five years of low exploration, the developments will start running out.
"This needs careful thought and planning. The good news is between industry and government we have more than got the knowledge and talent and know-how to do that."