Britain’s nascent shale gas industry has taken another half step forward as planning officials in North Yorkshire have recommended a planning application for approval.
Third Energy, a UK oil firm majority owned by a Barclays private equity fund, has applied for permission to conduct a fracking programme on an existing well at its Kirby Misperton field, a mature operation in Ryedale, in the Vale of Pickering, which has a long history of conventional production.
As those following the UK fracking story closely will know, getting the officer’s recommendation does not guarantee planning approval will be granted.
Cuadrilla, similarly, reecived the green light from planning officers for its proposed fracking project in Lancashire, near Blackpool, but the county council rejected the application. The privately owned shale gas firm appealed that decision last year and the outcome is still awaited.
Rasik Valand, Third Energy chief executive, highlighted that the company has been producing gas “safely and discreetly” from the site for over 20 years, and it expects to maintain the same standards in the future.
“We are pleased that the planning officer has recommended that North Yorkshire County Council approve our application.”
“Within our application, and throughout North Yorkshire County Council’s thorough assessment of it, including various stages of consultation, and through all the additional information provided, we have addressed the wide range of questions, concerns and comments raised by NYCC, statutory consultees and others.”
“This work is reflected in the planning officer’s report together with the planning conditions proposed. We believe that this thorough report will enable North Yorkshire County Council to reach a positive determination on our application.”
Ken Cronin, chief executive of industry group United Kingdom Onshore Oil and Gas (UKOOG), in a statement said: “It is good news that the North Yorkshire County Council planning officer is recommending that the planning application at Kirby Misperton is approved, reflecting the hard work NYCC officers and Third Energy have done to address concerns that have been raised following extensive consultations.
“We will look forward to the council's decision on that application, in due course.
“This recommendation should not be seen by anyone as a surprise, considering the well at Kirby Misperton has already been approved by the council, Health and Safety Executive and an independent well examiner and subsequently drilled.
“The further application for the hydraulic fractures has also received approval by the Environment Agency with the issue of relevant Permits.”
Environmental groups have protested against the proposed project, as they have other fracking proposals.
Friends of the Earth issued a statement following the planner’s recommendation warning Third Energy not to ‘pop’ champagne corks yet.
Simon Bowens, a Friends of the Earth’s Yorkshire campaigner, said: “North Yorkshire Councillors have been presented with clear evidence that Third Energy's application could harm local wildlife, local business, people's health and the environment - including from Ryedale District Council, Flamingo Land and the Wildlife Trust.
"The council must now listen to the thousands of residents who have objected to fracking, and the strong evidence put before them, and reject Third Energy's proposal to frack.”
Both Third Energy and Cuadrilla are privately owned businesses.
IGas Energy Plc (LON:IGAS) is one of very few investible plays on UK shale, and of those that are investible it is the most significant.
It has, pending confirmation of new licences, about one million acres in the UK that deemed to be prospective for shale.
Whilst it has only done work on small portions of that it beleives it has already identified huge gas resources. Estimates put that resource at 80 trillion cubic feet of gas-initially-in-place (GIIP).
READ IN DEPTH: Market currently gives IGas very little credit for shale
If IGas was able to easily plan, permit, drill and frack shale wells in the UK, the group's valuation would be unrecognisable from what it is today.
Such is the uncertainty over timelines, for local planing and permitting particularly, IGas is now working through what it is describing as a five year strategy for shale. At present, this mostly involves planning applications, appeals, and a lot of waiting.
Forward steps for any of UK shale’s early movers like Third Energy or Cuadrilla may prove influential for those monitoring IGas’s prospects.
The government in Westminster has repeatedly given support to UK shale, but, this has yet to translate to meaningful or measurable progress at local level.