Reporting on the unconventional oil and gas industry and its use of hydraulic fracturing
21st February 2014 The UK’s “number one shale gas conference” has moved from Manchester to Birmingham. Delegates to Shale UK received an email today telling them the original venue, Manchester Central, could no longer accommodate the event because it had another large conference taking place simultaneously. It also […]
21st February 2014 The green movement’s opposition to shale gas on climate change grounds came under attack on Wednesday (February 19th) from both the Government and the hydrocarbon industry. The Chancellor, George Osborne, and Francis Egan, the chief executive of Cuadrilla, both argued that shale gas would help […]
20th February 2014 According to a survey by Bloomberg News, the only company that plans to frack at least one well in the UK this year is IGas Energy Plc. The company has faced protests for the past three months from anti fracking campaigners camped outside its exploratory drilling […]
19/2/14 Development of a UK fracking industry could be threatened by uncertainty about the planning and approvals process, according to the Poyry consulting group. A report published by the company this week warned that investment in shale gas could be deterred because it was unclear whether the UK […]
18/2/14 The South Downs National Park Authority has halted consideration of Celtique Energie’s planning application for exploratory drilling at Fernhurst because key information is missing. The application will need to go through a new consultation and is unlikely to be decided until the summer. The authority’s chief executive, […]
18/2/14 Frack Free Balcombe Residents’ Association has responded to an interview (reported here last week) by Shale World with the village’s parish council chair Alison Stevenson. The full response is posted below from FFBRA’s latest newsletter. Community benefit FFBRA challenged Alison’s Stevenson’s suggestion that Balcombe could receive £80,000 from […]
10/2/14 Alison Stevenson, chair Balcombe Parish Council, is attending the 2014 Shale Gas World conference in Manchester in May. The website http://www.shale-world.com/ asked her about Balcombe’s experience, public attitudes to drilling and how well the operating companies had engaged with people. The interview was published last week but […]
10/2/14 Transcripts of last week’s parliamentary questions on: Health and Safety Executive and Environment Agency inspections at Balcombe and other sites Monitoring methane emissions Costs of regulations Production and development licences Common liabilities fund Disposal of fluid into the Manchester Ship Canal With thanks to theyworkforyou.com 6/2/14 Question […]
10/2/14 The American energy entrepreneur, Chris Wright, told the House of Lords last month (14/1/14) that Britain would need only 35 shale gas drilling rigs and 700 wells a year. Giving evidence to the Economic Affairs Committee investigation into shale gas, he said his figure was based on the […]
10/2/14 The onshore oil and gas industry appears to be shying away from public debate, despite making promises to engage with local communities. Member companies of the UK Onshore Operators Group (UKOOG) have signed up to a Community Engagement Charter, which pledges “openness and transparency in everything we […]
DRILL OR DROP? 