Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory this morning said he would pursue oil drilling off North Carolina's coast if elected in November.

Speaking at the Greenville Convention Center, McCrory said one of his first acts as governor would be meeting with the Coastal Resources Commission to change coastal energy policies and issuing an executive order to provide for safe, technologically sound deep sea exploration and drilling.

Brock Letchworth/The Daily Reflector (ENLARGE)

Republican candidate for governor Pat McCrory, left, speaks with 3rd Congressional District Republican Party Chairman Bob Pruett and Dan Phillips, chairman of the Hertford County Republican Party, Monday morning prior to announcing his stance on offshore drilling.

McCrory said he would then petition to federal government to allow the state the opportunity to drill off its coast.

North Carolina could see as much as a 37.5 percent revenue share if approved, he said, adding that money would go a long way toward improving economic conditions in eastern North Carolina.

"The east has a higher unemployment rate and lower per capita income than the rest of the state," McCrory said. "But it does not have to be that way. With safe, environmentally sound drilling in the deep sea off our coast, we can create new high paying jobs, jobs that the people of our poor counties can fill."

North Carolina could see the financial benefits of offshore drilling within 10 years, he said.

Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue, McCrory's rival for the governor's seat, has said she is opposed to the idea, citing environmental concerns.

McCrory said the Manteo Project is evidence of the possibilities. The project, located 45 miles off the state's coast on the Continental Shelf, indicates there are nearly 1.5 billion barrels of oil or equivalent gas there, McCrory said.

Officials also project the area could contain as much as five trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the equivalent of 833 billion barrels of oil, he said.

McCrory said the product could be piped away from coastal counties to inland eastern counties for processing.