Shale Oil: Scotland May Have Up To 6 Billion Barrels And That Could Change Debate On Independence
International Business Times
Published Jun 30, 2014 08:40AM ET
Updated Jun 30, 2014 09:00AM ET
Shale Oil: Scotland May Have Up To 6 Billion Barrels And That Could Change Debate On Independence
By Meagan Clark - Scotland’s most densely populated areas may have billions of barrels of shale oil underground, according to a report released Monday by the British Geological Survey. The discovery comes as Scotland debates independence before a referendum in September.
The Midland Valley of Scotland between Glasgow and Edinburgh may contain 6 billion barrels of oil, though only part of it would be practical to extract, the survey found. The oil could expand the U.K.’s 3 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, held mostly offshore Scotland in the North Sea.
The Scottish government says the North Sea fields will be enough to pump the economy of an independent Scotland, but critics say the reserves are declining and would leave the country vulnerable.
“This report will give reassurance to investors who wish to explore for oil and gas onshore in Scotland,” Ken Cronin, CEO of U.K. industry lobby the Onshore Operators Group, said in a statement.
Scotland’s 80 trillion cubic meters of shale gas resources (about 2,800 trillion cubic feet) could cover U.K. gas needs for more than three decades, the report shows, but it’s only 6 percent of Britain’s potential. Most of the gas resources are across northern England.
U.K. Energy Minister Michael Fallon spoke of the discovery as strengthening the U.K. as a whole.
“Only the broad shoulders of the United Kingdom can attract investment in new energy sources and maintain the U.K.'s position as one of the world's great energy hubs – generating energy and generating jobs,” he said in a statement.
None of Britain’s shale gas drillers have used hydraulic fracturing or fracking, the process used widely in the U.S. where water, sand and chemicals are injected into shale to break apart the rock and release oil and gas. Critics of shale gas say it damages the environment because of the chemicals used in extraction. In six years, Britain’s oil and gas industry will bid for permits in the shale areas for the first time.
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Written By: International Business Times
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