The Clyde oilfield was discovered in June 1978. It is situated about 290 kilometers South-east of Aberdeen in a water depth of 80 metres. The hydrocarbons are contained in a dome like reservoir some 3,700 metres below the seabed. The reservoir is a Jurassic marine sandstone, with estimated recoverable reserves of 154 million barrels of oil.
Development work on the field started at the end of 1982, although construction of the platform started did not take place until 1984. The Clyde structure was the first in the North Sea to be wholly engineered and constructed in Scotland.