More than two dozen new areas in northern England and the Midlands could face fracking after new licences were awarded for oil and gas exploration.
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It is thought that not all of the sites will require fracking technologies to enable oil and gas extraction, but developers believe numerous zones could prove suitable for fracking.
They will unlock about 1,000 square miles of land thought to be rich in shale gas, including areas near big cities including Nottingham, Sheffield, Lincoln and Preston, to oil exploration.
“Identifying appropriate sites above the most prospective shale resources, delivering the necessary infrastructure and establishing a supply chain will all be vital if the industry is to flourish”.
“With nearly 100 applications received, the 14th Onshore Round has attracted significant interest and high-quality proposed work programs from a range oil and gas companies”, said OGA Chief Executive Andy Samuel said.
Contracts for the 27 blocks announced Tuesday won’t be awarded until later in the year after another 132 blocks have been assessed in more detail, the government said.
Energy secretary Minister Amber Rudd yesterday announced that shale gas planning applications – like the Third Energy plan for Kirby Misperton – will be fast tracked in a bid to secure the jobs and economic benefits promised by a flourishing shale gas industry.
“This is why the OGA (Oil and Gas Authority) has moved quickly to confirm the winners of licence blocks which do not need further environmental assessment”.
“Keeping the lights on and powering the economy is not negotiable and these industries will play a key part in providing secure and reliable energy to UK homes and businesses for decades to come”, he added. “Investment in shale could reach £33bn and support 64,000 jobs creating financial security for hardworking people and their families, whilst providing a cost-efficient bridge to lower-carbon energy use”.
But environmental campaigners criticised the decision.
“It looks suspiciously like the Tories are trying to avoid fracking taking place in their heartlands by pushing as much of it as possible up north”, said Friends of the Earth head of campaigns Andrew Pendleton.
“The government is backing the destructive fracking industry with tax breaks and stifling local opposition”.
Exploration companies already hold PEDL licences in large parts of Yorkshire.
The applications are subject to approval by local councils who will have 16 weeks to decide after the government last week promised to step in if they fail to keep to the deadline.
It called on the Government to introduce new measures to rule out fracking in all protected areas including SSSIs before handing out licences to shale companies.
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“People finding out that they are in the fracking frontline will not take kindly to the bypassing of democracy as fracking is forced through with the new draconian planning guidance”.
