Archer said today that it is looking for opportunities to redeploy crew after the early termination of a North Sea well decommissioning contract with oil major Shell.

Norway-headquartered Archer said Shell had decided to use “another technical solution” for plugging and abandonment (P&A) on Brent Charlie.

“As a result of this, the scope of Archer’s work for Shell has been reduced,” an Aberdeen-based spokesman said.

The spokesman said the impact on Archer and its employees was still unclear.

“Archer is currently looking for suitable alternative positions within our UK portfolio for those affected,” he added.

Oil and gas news publication Upstream said about 70 jobs were at risk.

It reported that Shell cancelled the contract due to an issue with the derrick on Brent Charlie, which had previously been used for P&A work.

Shell declined to comment.