North Sea oil spill unsolved

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LONDON, Aug. 31 (UPI) -- A British government agency said it was investigating who was responsible for an oil spill reported near a Talisman Energy facility in the North Sea.

Talisman reported a minor leak from a undersea pipeline near its Tartan Alpha installation in the North Sea tied to the Galley field. "The production pipeline was already isolated and depressurized," the company said in a statement.

The company told energy reporting Web site Rigzone that analysis of crude oil taken from sheen observed in the vicinity indicated it wasn't from the Galley field in the North Sea

The British Department of Energy and Climate Change reported sheen this week about 2 miles from the site. Talisman confirmed that about 88 barrels of fluid was released from the subsea pipeline, of which 13 barrels were oil.

A DECC spokesman told Rigzone that Talisman wasn't making a connection between the release from the subsea pipeline and sheen observed in the region.

"We're investigating it at this moment," the spokesman said.

A DECC statement issued to regional newspaper the Scotsman said the source of the sheen wasn't identified but there was nothing to suggest a release was ongoing.

The newspaper reported the size of the sheen represents about 800 barrels of oil, describing the incident as "a mystery."