Get Britain fracking or be held hostage by Russia, says policy think tank

Figures for natural gas were even more worrying as the UK produced 1.24  trillion cubic feet of gas last year but consumed 2.7 trillion cubic feet. The majority of this deficit in supply was made up from imports from Norway, Qatar and Europe.

Coal, too, shows a significant dependence on foreign imports. The fuel of Britain’s steam-powered industrial revolution continues to play a critical role in power generation in the UK but little is still mined locally.

Although billions of tonnes of coal remain at depths under British soil and more than 800m tonnes is thought to be accessible closer to the surface, the UK is heavily reliant on imports especially from Russia.

Given the tense ongoing standoff with Russia and the western powers over East Ukraine and Crimea, the Centre for Policy Studies believes that Britain has little alternative other than to embrace the development of new shale resources in order to reduce the Kremlin’s capacity to use its wealth in energy and resources to hold the UK hostage.

“Renewed concerns over European energy dependency on Russia means the question of energy security is high on the list of priorities at the G7 in Brussels.

Energy security should be measured according to the diversity of sources of supply and dependence on imports from volatile countries,” according to the think tank’s latest bulletin.

The warning from the Centre for Policy Studies comes as the Government prepares to open up vast areas of England in a new licensing round for rights to drill.

To make Britain more appealing to companies which specialise in the controversial process of hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, the Government has also introduced a raft of new measures such as paving the way for horizontal drilling under homes.

But the think tank has also warned that measures introduced to promote fracking in the UK in last week’s Queen’s Speech have not gone far enough to encourage investment.

Unlike the US, where fracking has been largely embraced, land-owners in the UK will see only limited direct financial benefit from fracking underneath their property.

According to the Centre for Policy Studies: “The existing fiscal regime is complex and burdensome and although some steps have been taken to reduce this, more can be done.

The Queen’s Speech included plans to encourage the production of shale gas and geothermal energy but we await more detailed proposals.

Although we should be aware of legitimate concerns over property rights, it is important for the Government to allow a real market in fracking for shale gas to develop both for environmental reasons and for our long-term energy security.”

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