The creator of one of Britain’s largest shopping developments could be one of the prime movers if Britain’s shale revolution takes off.
The involvement of Peel Holdings in the industry could also breathe life into the once great Manchester Ship Canal and the Port of Liverpool.
Peel, which built the Trafford Centre before selling it on and owns Salford’s MediaCity UK, has an oil and gas division that is already working with shale pioneers such as IGas Energy to find well sites.
A large chunk of the 11,479 square kilometres of the UK handed over to shale gas drillers in last week’s onshore licensing round is right in the backyard of the property and infrastructure group.
Peel is using this large strategic land bank, which includes the Manchester Ship Canal and the Port of Liverpool, to help shale gas firms locate and develop well sites.
As one of the north-west’s major land owners it has about 30,000 acres across the region that hosts the bulk of Britain’s defined shale gas resources (currently estimated to about 300 trillion cubic feet).
That such a large portion of that land is ‘brown field’ and is located within reach of key logistical infrastructure such as Peel’s port and rail assets means it can be particularly useful.
Peel says it is “perfectly placed” to support the shale gas industry.
“With a larger number of operators and licenses across the UK we believe the time is now to ensure that the region maximises the inevitable investment that will follow by ensuring the supply chain is in place to service the industry,” said Peel Oil & Gas managing director Myles Kitcher.
He sees Peel’s shale gas division as a “strategic development partner” for the sector’s current and prospective licence holders. He reckons it can help shale firms speed up project delivery and can help them de-risk development.
An upturn in activity is expected to follow the onshore licensing process, which saw a total of 159 new licence blocks awarded and could feasibility see nearly 100 new wells drilled in the coming years.
A large proportion of them are in the north-west or within a 90 minute drive from Peel’s base at the Trafford Centre. Companies such as Cuadrilla, INEOS and IGas are all among the recipients of new shale licenses.
There are three major shale wells planned for next year that could make or break the industry.
To move forward and convince some of the doubters, the industry has to confirm precisely what the country’s shale gas endowment is.
It must also asses just how much of it could be extracted and how valuable the industry as a whole could be.
Proponents of this new energy source say that too much time is being lost to Britain’s onerous planning process and that shale’s early promise is stalling.
As a result of the licensing round there will be a greater weight of numbers, and as larger numbers of projects move forward speedy access to amenable well sites will be critical.
It means that Peel’s offering may well see sharp demand.
And, in a roundabout way, could see the unlikely coalescence of shale gas, renewable energy, shopping centres and Coronation Street.