Oil giant ConocoPhillips to axe 450 UK jobs over next two years

The US company is stopping production at a gas terminal on the Lincolnshire coast

North Sea oil and gas has been hit by a slowdown in recent years (ConocoPhillips)

Oil giant ConocoPhillips is cutting 450 roles in the UK after it stops production at its Theddlethorpe Gas Terminal in the North Sea later this year.

The firm currently employs 1,300 staff and contractors across its UK operations, both onshore and offshore. The Theddlethorpe terminal, located on the Lincolnshire coast in England, was earmarked for closure by the company last year.

A spokesperson for ConocoPhillips said the job cuts will be made between 1 October 2018 and April 2020, following a voluntary redundancy programme.

The US company swung back to profit in the fourth quarter of last year, helped by the rising price of crude oil, with the bulk of that profit coming from its operations in Alaska.

The North Sea oil and gas industry has been under pressure in recent years, with several platforms shutting down due to oil prices going in the wrong direction.

However, earlier this year Shell said it would start drilling in the North Sea's Penguin oil field, its first new manned project in the area for nearly 30 years.

Shell said its new project would support up to 400 jobs, mainly in Scotland.