UK Shale Gas Companies Intend to Flare Excess Gas

Environmental wellness experts have condemned a move to be made by the two companies exploring for shale gas in the UK. Cuadrilla – with gas operations in Lancashire and plans for new drilling in West Sussex – and iGas –, which has recently disclosed plans to drill in the Bowland Shale in Lancashire – have plans to flare excess gas at their sites.

Flaring excess will be the most visible sign of the fracking revolution that many in business and government would like to bring to the UK. Burning the methane results in greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, and so flaring excess gas is widely regarded as damaging to the wellbeing of the planet. Fracking wells are now widespread in the US, and flaring is so prevalent that you can see the flames from space.

Methane leaks from gas and oil fracking sites, and so fracking companies prefer to burn it as, during the exploration stage, it is cheaper than capturing it and using it for fuel, and it is less dangerous than allowing it to leak freely. It is understood that the UK companies have disclosed their plans to the Environment Agency, which does not ban flaring, but the British Countryside will suffer – with pipes tens of metres high burning naked flames at the top.

According to Joss Garman, policy director at Greenpeace, ‘As well as the industrialisation of rural England and the impacts on our climate, we now know fracking could mean hundreds of naked flames lighting up the English countryside. The UK is not the US and the consensus is that shale gas will not bring down bills. So for communities in the two-thirds of England earmarked for potential fracking, shale gas could mean a lot of pain for little gain.’

Cuadrilla has asserted that during the production phase, its shale gas wells would be capped, preventing methane from reaching the surface. The company said, ‘It is not possible to capture the gas during the exploration phase of the project. This can only be done during the production phase when pipeline and associated facilities are in place to use the gas.’ Captured gas would be fed into the gas network.

Categories: Fracking, methane, Shale Gas

Environmentalists Warn Against UK Plans to Flare Excess Gas

Environmental wellness experts have condemned a move to be made by the two companies exploring for shale gas in the UK. Cuadrilla – with gas operations in Lancashire and plans for new drilling in West Sussex – and iGas –, which has recently disclosed plans to drill in the Bowland Shale in Lancashire – have plans to flare excess gas at their sites.

Flaring excess will be the most visible sign of the fracking revolution that many in business and government would like to bring to the UK. Burning the methane results in greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, and so flaring excess gas is widely regarded as damaging to the wellbeing of the planet. Fracking wells are now widespread in the US, and flaring is so prevalent that you can see the flames from space.

Methane leaks from gas and oil fracking sites, and so fracking companies prefer to burn it as, during the exploration stage, it is cheaper than capturing it and using it for fuel, and it is less dangerous than allowing it to leak freely. It is understood that the UK companies have disclosed their plans to the Environment Agency, which does not ban flaring, but the British Countryside will suffer – with pipes tens of metres high burning naked flames at the top.

According to Joss Garman, policy director at Greenpeace, ‘As well as the industrialisation of rural England and the impacts on our climate, we now know fracking could mean hundreds of naked flames lighting up the English countryside. The UK is not the US and the consensus is that shale gas will not bring down bills. So for communities in the two-thirds of England earmarked for potential fracking, shale gas could mean a lot of pain for little gain.’

Cuadrilla has asserted that during the production phase, its shale gas wells would be capped, preventing methane from reaching the surface. The company said, ‘It is not possible to capture the gas during the exploration phase of the project. This can only be done during the production phase when pipeline and associated facilities are in place to use the gas.’ Captured gas would be fed into the gas network.

Categories: british countryside, flares, Shale Gas

Will We Soon Be Dependant on Other Countries for Energy?

Many of those who write about the future UK energy situation often make reference to “the lights going out”, but for Professor Jonathan Stern, Chairman and senior research fellow, natural gas research programme, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, the outcome is likely to have a far less dramatic effect on the UK’s environmental wellness.

According to Professor Stern, ‘It’s quite correct that a great deal of old coal and nuclear capacity will be retired over the next few years. For the rest of this decade, that will be replaced by as much renewables as can be built (mostly wind) and gas. Most of the gas-fired power generation which is needed has already been built; around 4GW is currently not in operation because it is unprofitable and most of the rest is running at far lower load factors than in previous years. If “the lights threaten to go out”, existing gas-fired generation will run at higher load factors and more can quickly be built.’

Professor Stern argues against environmental writers who assert that we will soon be ‘at the mercy of Russia and Kazakhstan’ as neither country even supplies the UK with any significant volumes of gas. However, the professor does allow that we may soon be more dependent on Norway, the Netherlands, Qatar and perhaps the US for our energy needs. But aren’t we, as a country, working on ways to reduce our dependence on other countries in this area?

‘Towards the end of the decade, the UK may produce some shale gas if drilling and fracking prove to be environmentally acceptable,’ the Professor explains. However, he adds that ‘the volumes will not be great and are unlikely to be “cheap” in comparison to imports. Post 2020, other carbon (with carbon capture and storage) and non-carbon generation options may become available, including increased production of shale gas. Outcomes will depend on costs, and costs will be affected by environmental acceptability and carbon pricing.’

Professor Stern concludes by saying, ‘The future of the UK power sector over the next decade has already been determined: wind and gas may not be the best possible option, but it is far from the worst, in relation to costs and carbon emissions. Apologies for the lack of apocalyptic or visionary sentiments about our future energy situation, but these are simply obscuring rather than illuminating the debate.’

Categories: dependence, Fracking, Shale Gas

Poland’s Failed Shale Gas Means Unwanted Strong Russian Ties

Poland’s hopes that its deposits of the hydrocarbon will soon cut its dependence on Russian supplies and support the weakening economy have now been dashed, as it has now been reported that Talisman Energy Inc. and Marathon Oil are pulling out of exploration for shale gas in the country. The companies commented that they have not found enough gas to warrant further expensive exploration or extraction procedures.

Altogether, three major companies have retreated from Poland in less than a year, which suggests Poland was too optimistic about the value of its deposits, or at least the speed with which it can retrieve them. Big energy companies want shale gas deposits that are easiest to extract, but Poland’s shale rock has proven more difficult to mine than shale rock in the US. This is because of the geological make-up of the land and to the fact that the region is much more densely populated than America.

Energy and environmental wellness experts have said that, as a result of this retreat, Poland will have to undertake many more tests, and spend more time and much more money to produce shale gas. According to Kamlesh Parmar, chief executive of 3Legs Resources, the first energy exploration company in Poland to obtain test gas flow, in 2011, ‘The issue for us … is to make sure that the industry is not disincentivised to carry on with exploration activity and carry on investing hard money in projects.’

Jolanta Talarczyk, spokeswoman for the State Mining Authority, noted that only 43 wells have been drilled so far, just 12 of which have produced some gas flow. However, hundreds of them will be needed to accurately assess the country’s reserves potential. The Polish government also had hopes that a boom in investment would help the economy, which has been slowing sharply. The shale gas industry was also expected to create thousands of jobs, which would help to reduce the 14.3% unemployment rate.

Shale gas was also meant to boost Poland’s geopolitical independence from Russia. Since the fall of the Soviet bloc, Poland has – like many other Eastern European countries – been trying to move out of Russia’s sphere of influence. As it stands, Poland imports 70% of its gas and some 90% of its oil from Russia, but Moscow has shown it is willing to use its gas supplies as a weapon in political matters, shutting off supplies on two occasions in price disputes with Ukraine. Russia also dictates prices, making Poland pay one of Europe’s highest, almost $500 for 1,000 cubic meters of gas. As such, Prime Minister Donald Tusk commented, ‘We do not want Poland’s strong economy to be dependent on energy deliveries from the East.’

Poland’s Failed Shale Gas Means Unwanted Strong Russian Ties

Categories: Poland, Russia, Shale Gas