PREMIER Oil has said it expects to start production from the giant Solan field West of Shetland later this year after experiencing delays with the project.

In an update on trading from January to April, London-based Premier said production from Solan is expected to plateau at 20,000 barrels oil equivalent daily to 25,000 boed. Cash spend on Solan totalled $1.5bn at 30 April. Premier also said the Catcher project off eastern Scotland remains on schedule for first oil in 2017. In February the company said the expected start of production from Solan had been pushed back from the second quarter after the commissioning of production facilities took longer than anticipated amid poor weather conditions and low productivity over the winter period. Premier, which also has assets in Asia, produced 16,100 boed in the UK in the first four months, versus 20,400 boed in the same period last year. Group production fell to 60,200 boed from 65,800 boed.