MOSCOW (MRC) -- The British government took steps to speed up energy exploration including controversial hydraulic fracturing for shale gas with a new licensing round for companies looking for onshore oil and gas, reported Reuters.
Concerns about the potentially dangerous impact of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the search for shale gas has prompted protests in Britain and outright bans on the practice in France and elsewhere.
The licences are the first step in the exploration process but do not give outright permission to drill. Oil and gas exploration companies must also obtain planning permission, environmental permits and health and safety approvals before they can receive final go-ahead to drill in Britain.
"Ultimately, done right, speeding up shale will mean more jobs and opportunities for people and help ensure long-term economic and energy security for our country," said Business and Energy Minister Matthew Hancock.
Britain is betting on the development of shale gas to help curb its growing dependence on imports and to stem a decline in oil and gas tax receipts as output from the mature North Sea basin dwindles.A third of Britain's gas needs can come from its own shale gas by the early 2030s if government policies and economic growth allow firms to invest in gas exploration, the National Grid said this month.
Britain's technically recoverable shale gas resources are estimated at around 26 trillion cubic feet and the government has offered tax breaks to drive investment in a sector which has transformed the US energy market.
However, Britain is still in the early stages of exploring for shale gas and opposition has grown on grounds that it is potentially harmful to the environment and after one project triggered earth tremors.
As MRC wrote previously, in late December 2012, the UK's Energy Secretary, Edward Davey, lifted a ban on the drilling for shale gas in the country, thus, giving green light to gas "fracking". We remind that the ban was put in place after the UK's first project near Lancashire caused tremors last year.
In early 2014, Total, Europe’s third-largest oil company, acquired a 40% interest in two shale gas exploration licenses in the UK. The acquisition marks the French oil and gas firm’s first entry into shale gas exploration in the UK, while the company is already involved in shale gas projects in the US, Argentina, China, Australia, Poland and Denmark.
Besides, INEOS Group is considering investing in UK shale-gas exploration to secure raw materials for its chemicals operations in the country after a shortage threatened to close a plant employing at least 800 people.
MRC