CNN: U.K. prepares for U.S.-style shale gas boom

The United Kingdom could be one step closer to a U.S.-style energy renaissance as new estimates show there is a massive amount of untapped shale gas in the Northwest of England.

Energy firm IGas released estimates this week showing there could be as much as 170 trillion cubic feet of gas in its license area - a monumental amount given that the U.K. uses only 3 trillion cubic feet each year.

IGas is among a handful of energy companies that have been granted licenses to look for shale gas opportunities in areas across the U.K. in the hopes that the country may be able to replicate the energy boom currently playing out in the U.S.

New techniques such as hydraulic fracking -- which involves injecting water, sand and chemicals deep into the ground at high pressure to crack the shale and allow the oil or gas to flow -- have made the extraction of oil and gas from shale rock commercially viable.

"It's inevitable that we will find more shale gas and it's inevitable that we will begin to exploit it," said London-based energy analyst Steven Fawkes. "We need more indigenous, local energy. We need cheaper energy. And as long as appropriate [policy and environmental] safeguards are put in place, I think that's a good thing."  MORE