Shell has suspended production on its last remaining platform in the Brent north sea oil field because of a gas leak.

Thirty-one non-essential staff were evacuated from the Brent Charlie platform, in the North Sea between Norway and the Shetland isles, following the discovery. Another 145 remained on board.

The leak was sealed the same day and an investigation has been launched into the cause. Nobody was injured as a result of the leak.

Last month Shell removed the Brent Delta platform for scrap and the company says it plans to decommission Brent Charlie ‘in the near future’. The Brent field has yielded three billion barrels of oil since production started in 1976, but in recent years the platforms have been refurbished to draw natural gas rather than oil.