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The Oil and Gas Authority and the Department for Energy and Climate Change have announced that 27 sites for shale gas extraction will be formally offered to companies following the latest round of licensing.
Prof. Geoffrey Maitland, Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and Professor of Energy Engineering at Imperial College London, said:
“The onshore oil and gas exploration licence applications under the 14th round have clearly undergone detailed scrutiny since they were submitted in October of last year; the potential operators’ technical competency, financial viability, capacity and environmental awareness have all been screened as well as the environmental sensitivity of each block under the Habitat Regulations which provides protection for designated sites. The outcome is that 27 sites have been identified as having no ‘likely significant effects’ as a result of shale gas extraction operations, whilst another 132 blocks have been recommended for exploitation, subject to a range of conditions and constraints, which are now out for public consultation. Once this consultation process is completed later this year, licences will be issued for the original 27 sites along with others which pass through the consultation process.
“It should be emphasised that once the Petroleum Exploration and Development Licenses have been issued, the operators still have to submit specific operational plans and demonstrate to the regulators that these are safe and environmentally acceptable – in other words that they will avoid any of the concerns about contamination of aquifers, damaging seismic activity or other environmental damage by sound, monitored engineering design and practice. There is considerable experience amongst oil and gas operators and oilfield service companies of how to implement these operations with minimal and acceptable levels of impact and UK’s world-leading regulatory procedures are designed to ensure that this happens.
“There are a number of interesting features about the current licensing round. There were 95 applications from 47 companies, indicating strong interest in investing in shale gas extraction in the UK despite recent weakening in prices. This supports the government’s view that there is high economic potential in a shale gas industry which provides not only secure energy supplies, based on methane, the cleanest fossil fuel which produces only 50% of the CO2 emissions of oil and coal (and hence has major environmental benefits in avoiding the highly damaging consequences of climate change), but also can create large numbers of jobs and economic benefits to local communities.
“Almost all of the 27 blocks already cleared for licensing are in areas which have in the past been traditional coal mining areas, such as Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire, where the communities will have an appreciation of the benefits to the local economy of sub-surface operations for supplying energy and an acceptance of the need for well-managed, safe industrial operations to help create wealth and power our society. Together with existing licences in these areas, and in the North West, it is to be hoped that sufficient projects are approved to reach the gas production stage to both indicate the true potential for shale gas to be a major energy source in the UK, and replace the declining North Sea supplies, and to increase confidence in the safe operability and low environmental footprint of shale gas extraction processes that enables exploitation of other potential sites in areas with less experience of mining and industrial operations. It should always be born in mind that oil and gas has been produced for decades with little controversy at the Wytch Farm site in Dorset, from under Poole Harbour, with such great sensitivity to the local environment, and so well hidden, that few people are aware that it is there.”
Prof. Richard Davies, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Engagement & Internationalisation) at Newcastle University, said:
“In terms of the environment the big question is over the scale of future fracking activity in the UK.
“Even with this announcement, whether shale gas will work commercially in the UK is unknown and ultimately depends on whether the shale rocks are suitable. But what’s of interest with this announcement is that with the exception of GDF Suez, Total and Ineos the licence round awards go to small companies. It may be that the UK is simply not vast enough, or too early a stage, to be of interest to many of the majors yet. So it’s very early days.
“If the rocks do produce then we are fortunate that the USA has developed the technology significantly and we can learn from their mistakes. But there is no room for complacency as drilling and fracking are not risk free. Sharing data and openness will be important so that the risks can be best understood and the impacts reduced.’
Prof. Andrew Aplin, Professor of Unconventional Petroleum at Durham University, said:
“There can be no sensible discussion of the role of shale in the UK energy mix until wells are drilled and tested for commercial production. These licences may allow that to happen – but the public will have to accept the drilling or the government will have to force the issue. Once we know what the possibilities are, a more rational discussion may ensue about the desirability and viability of an onshore shale industry.”
Prof. Quentin Fisher, Professor of Petroleum Geoengineering at the University of Leeds, said:
“It’s encouraging to see that industry has not been put off investing in shale gas exploration in the UK by the recent illogical decision of the Lancashire council to withhold planning permission for Cuadrilla to drill further exploration wells on their license. Some of the 27 licences being awarded are very close to where I live. So I’m particularly pleased that the government has given my local community the opportunity to help the UK become more secure in its energy needs.
“Awarding these licenses is important because the data collected during the exploration will allow us to better predict the UK’s shale gas resources, which are currently extremely poorly constrained.”
The SMC produced a Factsheet on shale gas/fracking which is available here: http://www.sciencemediacentre.org/shale-gas-and-fracking-3/
Declared interests
Prof. Fisher: “I conduct research for the oil and gas industry but not from the key players involved with shale gas exploration in the UK.”
Prof. Davies: “ReFINE (Researching Fracking in Europe) is consortium led by Newcastle and Durham Universities and has been funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (UK), the EU, Chevron, Total, Shell, GDF Suez, Ineos and Centrica. Richard Davies, the lead for the ReFINE project has worked in the oil and gas industry and acted as a paid consultant. He is an unpaid member of the Science Advisory Group for ESIOS (Energy Security and Innovation Observing System for the Subsurface).”
Prof. Aplin receives funding from the petroleum industry and NERC for his group’s research.
Prof. Maitland: “I do research into carbon storage and enhanced oil/gas recovery sponsored by Shell and Qatar Petroleum. I worked for 20 years for oil and gas service company Schlumberger for 20 years between 1985 and 2005.”