How the US shale revolution changed the face of geopolitics July 8, 2019 In theory, we all know that major technical revolutions change and fundamentally disrupt the face of the world we live in. In practice, analysts of all stripes are too often glacially slow to realise this process when it is at work, let alone what it means. These events (such as the advent of the mass-produced [...]
We need the facts on fracking to make responsible decisions about UK energy August 18, 2015 Today the Government announced that it will award 27 new exploration licences, opening up 1,000 square miles of the UK as potential sites for shale gas extraction. With thousands more people faced with the possibility of having it on their doorstep, the debate on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has been well and truly renewed. Proponents [...]
Licence to frack: Government gives green light to 27 new onshore oil exploration sites August 18, 2015 The government has given the green light for 27 licences to explore onshore oil and gas, as it looks to strengthen the UK's nascent shale industry. The Oil & Gas Authority confirmed today that the licences from the 14th Onshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round will be formally offered to companies. Sites located [...]
Let’s get fracking: Government pledges to clamp down on sluggish planning applications August 13, 2015 The government has taken its biggest step yet towards giving the green-light to fracking, saying today that ministers could override local councils and fast-track planning applications. Whitehall will intervene when shale gas planning applications to local authorities are “dragged out for months, or even years on end”. The announcement comes less than two months after [...]
Frackers urge Whitehall: Fast track our plans August 10, 2015 Fracking companies yesterday urged the government to press forward with plans to fast-track their applications following an intervention by Amber Rudd, the energy secretary. Rudd’s colleague at the ministry, Andrea Leadsom, echoed the secretary of state’s support for fracking, telling City A.M.: “We are exploring ways to really kickstart the industry as we know it [...]
Cuadrilla set to appeal fracking refusal decision July 23, 2015 Shale gas company Cuadrilla said yesterday that it will not back down in its attempt to kick-start the UK’s fracking industry. The firm announced plans to appeal against a decision last month by Lancashire County Council (LCC) to refuse planning consent for two shale gas exploration sites. Cuadrilla sought planning permission to drill, hydraulically fracture [...]
Government to fast track plans for UK fracking July 19, 2015 Fracking could begin in the UK sooner than previously expected, following the government’s decision to award onshore oil and gas exploration licences in two stages, fast tracking the applicants whose proposals do not require extensive environmental assessment. The department for energy and climate change (DECC) will grant a number of licences from the fourteenth round [...]
Fracking could cut house prices by up to seven per cent July 2, 2015 Fracking could cut nearby house prices by up to seven per cent and increase the cost of insuring a home, according to previously redacted sections of a government report released yesterday. The Shale Gas Rural Economy Impacts by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) looked at the impact of fracking operations on [...]
Fracking: Cuadrilla’s plans rejected by Lancashire County Council in blow to UK’s fledgling shale gas industry June 29, 2015 Plans by Cuadrilla for excavating shale gas in Lancashire via the controversial method of fracking have been rejected by local authorities in a major setback for the UK's shale gas industry. The energy firm has been denied permission to frack at Preston New Road by Lancashire County Council, which last week made a similar decision on [...]
Cuadrilla bid for fracking project at Roseacre Wood in Lancashire rejected, but it may appeal June 25, 2015 Cuadrilla has failed in its bid to get a fracking project approved at Roseacre Wood in Lancashire, but says it may appeal the decision. Read more: Decision on Cuadrilla bid deferred until Monday The company had two decisions under review, and Lancashire County Council’s planning officers had recommended that the bid be declined. A decision on [...]