Oil giant Equinor confirms coronavirus case on North Sea platform
The Norwegian firm said today that one worker tested positive for the virus on its Martin Linge oil rig in the Norwegian section of the sea, according to Energy Voice.
It has been reported the individual is the first confirmed instance of an infected worker on offshore platforms globally.
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Hide AdAccording to Equinor the worker is not “seriously ill” and has been kept in isolation in a cabin since March 9.
It remains unclear as to when the worker will return to land.
Measures to prevent further contamination across the rigs have been put in place and other workers who have visited high-risk destinations have also been tested, according to the publication.
Oil prices around the world have crashed, sending global trading markets into turmoil amid coronavirus outbreaks in countries all over the world.
More than £140 billion was wiped off the value of UK companies on the FTSE 100 following early trading on Monday as the stock exchange dropped to a four-year low.
Major oil companies, including BP and Shell were hard hit, with shares in both losing around 15 per cent of their value on Monday morning.
However, smaller operators suffered even greater losses, with some seeing half the value of their shares wiped out.
A worker at Shell headquarters in Aberdeen tested positive for the coronavirus and has since been told to self-isolate.
For updates on the coronavirus in Scotland visit our Live Blog.
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