There\'s plenty of life and a high production capacity left in resource fields in the North Sea, U.S. energy explorer Apache Corp. announced. Apache, through its North Sea subsidiary, announced that it completed a deal with Exxon Mobil to assume operations at various resources fields in the North Sea. G. Steven Farris, chairman and chief executive officer at Apache, said the company has been eyeing reserves in the North Sea since Apache entered the regional market in 2003. \"These fields have significant remaining life, high production efficiency, quality reservoirs and a portfolio of low-risk exploitation projects,\" he said in a statement. An Apache spokesman told Bloomberg News it paid $1.25 billion to acquire Exxon\'s assets in the region. The British government this week announced it awarded 46 licenses to explore for oil and natural gas in the North Sea as part of the 26th offshore licensing round. In mid-October, British energy company BP announced it was investing billions of dollars in North Sea oil developments to exploit the Clair Ridge field west of the Shetland Islands. British Prime Minister David Cameron said the projects indicated continued interest in the North Sea region.