Energy giant Total has officially opened a major new gas processing plant in Shetland.

The Shetland Gas Plant began processing gas from the west of Shetland Laggan and Tomore fields in February.

Total said around 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent would be pumped through the terminal daily before being sent to the mainland via Sullom Voe.

The plant was the largest building project in the UK since the London Olympics and forms part of a £3.5bn investment in the North Sea by the French firm.

Work on the £800m facility started in 2010 but it was hit by a series of delays which developer Petrofac blamed on bad weather and industrial action.

The west of Shetland region contains an estimated fifth of the UK's remaining oil and gas reserves and the Laggan-Tomore development is expected to provide around 8% of the UK's gas needs.

Meanwhile, BP has doubled its stake in the Culzean North gas field as part of a £7bn North Sea investment programme.

The company has raised its holding from 16% to 32% in the development, which is expected to produce enough gas to meet 5% of total UK demand by 2021.

Production at the Maersk-operated field is expected to start in 2019 and continue into the 2030s, with production forecast to peak at the equivalent of 60,000 to 90,000 barrels of oil per day.

The value of a barrel of oil has risen steadily over the last few months from a low of around $27. The price now sits at about $47 after hovering around the $45 mark since late April.