As I mentioned in my reply to a similar question raised in the House on 8 February, there will be a substantial increase this year in offshore drilling activity with at least three exploration wells, one appraisal well and two development wells being drilled. However, well commitments beyond 2001 amount to only between three and six for the entire Irish offshore. With this in mind, I commenced an initiative aimed at both conserving certain areas of the Irish offshore by closing them off from development for the moment and gauging interest on the part of the industry in making well commitments in certain other limited areas. To that end, I have started a consultation process involving companies who are licence holders here to gauge their view on whether well commitments might be forthcoming in the event that a limited number of new licences might be offered and this process is ongoing.