Bloomberg: U.K. Plans to Allow Shale Gas Drilling to Resume This Year

The U.K. plans to allow companies including Cuadrilla Resources Ltd. to resume shale gas exploration this year to take advantage of “an exciting opportunity,” Energy Minister John Hayes said.

Drilling by Cuadrilla caused two earthquakes last year, leading to a suspension and an assessment by the Department of Energy and Climate Change of hydraulic fracturing, the process for extracting shale gas. Asked whether a resumption is likely this year, Hayes said “yes, I’d like it.”

“I am a great enthusiast for it, providing we have all the proper precautions in place,” Hayes said today in an interview. “Whether the companies proceed this year, is another matter. Certainly I want to get the matter settled from the government’s point of view sooner rather than later.”  MORE