Aberdeenshire, Scotland's least populated county, and one of the most scenic in the whole of the United Kingdom, lies directly in the north east of Scotland and is home to just over 200,000 residents (according to the 2001 census). Its two major towns, Banff and Aberdeen, are popular attractions for tourists from all over the world thanks to their wealth of culture and history and are also central hubs for business and commerce throughout the north east region. The local economy is primarily driven by agriculture, fishing and mining but county also has North Sea oil reserves that have been under production since 1975 when Occidental Petroleum discovered oil off the coast.