Opponents of Cuadrilla’s fracking operation in Lancashire have welcomed today’s news that the company has been ordered to decommission two shale gas wells.

The industry regulator, the North Sea Transition Authority, told DrillOrDrop this afternoon it had issued plug and abandonment notices for the wells at Preston New Road, near Blackpool. The company has until the end of 2024 to carry out the work.

 Frack Free Lancashire, which has campaigned against Cuadrilla’s operations for more than 10 years, said the news was “long overdue”.

Miranda Cox, from the organisation, said:

“Obviously, we will fully believe it when the last piece of equipment and every last grain of silica sand has been removed.

“Cuadrilla have been the bane of our lives for over a decade. The stress and ramifications of their failed fracking attempts will never be forgotten nor forgiven.”

Claire Stephenson, also from Frack Free Lancashire, added:

“The abject failure of Cuadrilla’s operations, from start to finish, has been a shadow over our community and lives.

“From the guff and bluster around gas estimations, earthquakes that caused structural property damage (which Cuadrilla had to pay compensation on), all the way to the ‘gold-standard’ fallacy on the toothless regulators’ inability to monitor a catalogue of failures – we have remained outraged at the travesty that has been forced upon us.

“From Lancashire to Cuadrilla: goodbye and good riddance.”

Susan Holliday, of Preston New Road Action group, said

“It is positive news that Cuadrilla have been ordered to plug and abandon the wells. It seems there has finally been an acceptance that there is no future in shale gas at Preston New Road.

“I am however perplexed as to why they have been allowed so long to do it, as their previous notice gave them 4 months, whereas this one allows them 16 months. They have now no reason to not get the site decommissioned by their June 2025 deadline. Our community will have endured the stress of fracking for 11 years by that point.”

Dr Doug Parr, Greenpeace UK chief scientist, said:

“Hopefully this spells the end of the foolish pursuit of the fracking nirvana which infected the body politic in the UK for years, including the time when the Cameron Government chose to ‘cut the green crap’.

“UK bill payers are now paying for this fossil fuel fever dream with every passing day. We’d like to think we’ve collectively learned something from this negative experience but, a decade on, another Conservative-led Government is once more in thrall to the oil and gas lobby and is about to make the same mistakes, which will once again damage efforts to tackle climate change and leave bill payers poorer.”

Jamie Peters, fracking campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:

“This is fantastic news for a community that has suffered far too long from the threat of the fracking industry. Communities in Lancashire, and all across England, stood up and successfully fought off industry attempts to develop their areas with untold consequences for the environment. Their victory is testament to our collective strength when we dare to dream of a better future, and Friends of the Earth is proud to have stood alongside them.

“Let this underscore the irrefutable evidence that the age of fossil fuels must end. Communities will keep taking a stand against powerful and polluting fossil fuel companies for as long as it takes the government to accelerate the transition to a cleaner future. Fracking campaigners were once vilified – just as some climate protesters are today – but it’s thanks to their unshakeable resolve that fracking is now deeply unpopular and has no foothold in the UK.

“The people of Preston New Road and Lancashire can rest easy that they’re on the right side of history with this historic win.”

Helen Chuntso brought a High Court challenge to Cuadrilla’s operation in Lancashire and has written about decommissioning of fracking sites. She said:

“Whilst it is good to see Cuadrilla’s failed attempt at extracting fracked gas from Lancashire finally enter the decommissioning process, it is essential that the details of the plans and costs are made available to the public. 

“Must the taxpayer now hope Cuadrilla’s current accounts have adequate funds in place to fully decommission and pay for any ongoing clean up due to this licence? 

“The public must not be subjected to opening the purse to pay for this, given estimates for decommissioning may reach around £1 million, this highlights why companies wishing to profit from fracked gas should have already left bonds with the government, and stringent financial assessments before licences are granted or ownership changes.”

We’ll update this article with more reaction as we get it. DrillOrDrop has invited responses from Cuadrilla and UKOOG, the organisation representing the fracking industry.