Following the recent announcement that Cuadrilla Resources will start fracking operations at its shale gas exploration wells in Lancashire, Will Scargill, Senior Oil & Gas Analyst at GlobalData, offers his view on the prospects for the sector.
"Although beginning fracking is an important step for Cuadrilla, we’re still a long way from shale gas playing a significant role in the UK energy sector.
"The government has put a lot of support behind the UK onshore sector in recent years, introducing the onshore tax allowance, licensing acreage and fast-tracking planning applications. In the end however, it will be technical and economic factors that determine whether shale gas is commercial and at what scale.
The first fracking activity at Preston New Road is expected to provide results early next year to give an idea of what volume of gas can be generated from these wells. Only from those results will Cuadrilla and the wider sector be able to understand whether there is commercial potential.”