UK position on gas fracking unlikely to change: minister

The UK government's position on gas fracking is unlikely to change despite the conflict in Ukraine, Minister for Energy, Clean Growth and Climate Change, Greg Hands told Chatham House's Energy Transitions 2022 conference in London March 15.

The government is due to publish an energy security strategy in the coming days, with speculation that a reprieve for gas fracking could be among potential initiatives to help reduce reliance on imported hydrocarbons.

"Until we see the science change and the community response to drillings change, [and] I don't see either of those things happening at present, the government's policy on fracking will remain unchanged," Hands said.

Similarly, the government's policy on investment in the North Sea would not be changed either, he said.

"Turning off domestic oil and gas production would not make sense and it is not something we will do. We need to balance technologies appropriately", while encouraging carbon capture and electrification of offshore facilities, Hands said.

The energy transition was not only a matter of decarbonization, the minister said.

"In the light of current events in Ukraine it is clearer than ever that it is also an issue of national security. Our strategy to generate low carbon energy will reduce our reliance on imported gas, shield customers from volatile international fossil fuel markets, and provide new opportunities to level up the economy," he said.

On March 10 UK shale gas developer Cuadrilla Resources urged the UK authorities to clarify whether it must still proceed with the plugging and abandonment of two shale gas wells in northwest England.

Cuadrilla said in February it planned to permanently seal the two shale gas wells it drilled at the Preston New Road site after the Oil and Gas Authority ordered them to be plugged and abandoned.

Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said March 9 that "it did not necessarily make sense" to concrete over the wells at the site.

The government put in place a moratorium on fracking in England in November 2019 after an analysis of the environmental impact of work at Cuadrilla's site at Preston New Road.

However, with gas prices having hit record highs, there are growing calls for the UK to reconsider its position on shale gas.

The NBP front-month price hit a record high of 503 p/th (Eur206.54/MWh, $65.85/MMBtu) on March 8, according to Platts price assessments by S&P Global Commodity Insights. The contract had fallen to 295 p/th March 14 at 1200 GMT on the ICE exchange.