THE start of January is traditionally a time when many of us feel cash-strapped, so the prospect of petrol prices falling below the £1-a-litre mark could offer motorists some new year cheer.

But plummeting fuel prices are filling the offshore oil industry with dread.

One leading figure said yesterday that the oil exploration sector is in crisis and close to collapse.

Why should we care?

Oil companies would struggle to win popularity contests with the general public. They often hit the headlines for negative reasons, such as when cartels are found to have fixed prices, or if disaster strikes, such as BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010 which damaged marine life, polluted beaches and claimed eleven lives.

But it is an industry of huge significance to the North-East economy.

The latest crisis of confidence – which has seen developers cancel projects, cut jobs and warn that much worse is set to follow - could have grave consequences for thousands of North-East workers.

The North East Chamber of Commerce estimates about 65,000 jobs in our region depend upon the oil and gas industry. Its influence runs deep – as a creator of wealth and a supporter of local contractors and jobs in the supply chain.

It also helps to underpin vital regional infrastructure. One of the few daily services still operating from Durham Tees Valley Airport is to Aberdeen. This has survived thanks to the scores of North-East workers making the trip to Britain’s oil capital.

Furthermore, it promotes the region globally. The North-East is known worldwide for its expertise in the offshore sector. It is a standing joke in the industry that if you travel to any oil or gas development in the world you are likely to hear someone with a North-East accent telling locals how they could do things better.

We would never suggest that lower petrol and diesel prices are a bad thing. But when you are next at the pumps it is worth remembering that lower prices come at a cost.