Cuadrilla to submit plans for Lancashire shale exploration this month

UK shale developers Cuadrilla said Monday it will move forward with plans to use hydraulic fracturing to test up to four wells near its Preston New Road site in Lancashire.

The company said in a statement that it expects to submit its plans to the Lancashire County Council by the end of May. A separate planning application for a second proposed exploration site, near Roseacre Wood, will be submitted a few weeks later, Cuadrilla added.

A detailed, independent environmental impact assessment will accompany the application which will also include plans to install a network of seismic monitoring stations, the company said.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is believed to have triggered a series of earth tremors in the Lancashire area in 2011 prompting the government to issue an 18 month shale gas moratorium on all fracking in the UK.

The potential dangers associated with the controversial gas extraction technique also served to increase local opposition to the projects, but Cuadrilla chief executive Francis Egan said “extensive” engagement with the affected communities has been taking place.

“We have undertaken extensive consultation and engagement with the local communities on these applications and have listened carefully to what people have told us. Where it has been reasonably practical to do so we have amended our plans to incorporate feedback and suggestions,” he said.

This step forward for Cuadrilla’s Lancashire shale interests comes just weeks after a report from the House of Lords called for the acceleration of the UK’s shale development as “an urgent national priority”.

“This application could be a really important milestone for Lancashire and the UK as we seek to unlock Lancashire’s shale gas potential,” Egan said.

A determination period of around 16 weeks is expected to follow the planning submission before a decision is taken by the Lancashire County Council.