US oil major Chevron is pressing ahead with a ground-breaking project which will breathe new life into its billion-barrel Captain field in the North Sea.

Chevron plans to boost recovery from Captain by 5-7% using “polymer technology” in the basin for the first time.

Greta Lydecker, managing director of Chevron Upstream Europe, said the final investment decision was an important milestone in the development of the technology.

Ms Lydecker said the technique would help extend the life of other North Sea fields and support the UK Government’s strategy of maximising economic recovery.

Captain was discovered about 90 miles north-east of Aberdeen in 1977.

Advances in horizontal drilling helped bring the field on steam in 1997 and last year it produced about 24,000 barrels of liquids and 3million cubic feet of natural gas per day.

Chevron, which operates and owns 85% of Captain, will use enhanced oil recovery (EOR) techniques to further increase output.

Phase one of the project involves drilling six new polymer injection wells and upgrading the platform.

The polymers will make the heavy oil in Captain less viscous, allowing it to flow more easily.