UK enforces faster shale applications
Planning applications for shale gas will be fast-tracked due to new measures announced on 13 August
Shale gas planning applications will be fast-tracked through a new, dedicated planning process, under UK government measures announced 13 August. They include identifying councils that repeatedly fail to determine oil and gas applications within the 16-week statutory timeframe, with subsequent applications potentially decided by the Communities Secretary. Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said the UK needed more, domestically-produced energy supplies – “and shale gas must play a part in that”. The measures come hot on the heels of the rejection in late June by Lancashire County Council of two such applications by Cuadrilla, after several prolonged extensions to the deliberation process. In August,
Also in this section
22 April 2026
The failure of OMV Petrom’s keenly watched exploration campaign at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh block highlights the Black Sea’s uneven track record, despite major successes like Neptun Deep and Sakarya
22 April 2026
Sustained strikes on ports, terminals and refineries are testing the resilience of Russia’s oil export system, yet rapid repairs, rerouting and surging prices mean the campaign has yet to deliver a decisive blow
21 April 2026
After overcoming a COVID-induced demand collapse with several years of successful market management, geopolitical events have conspired to provide the pact’s biggest test to date
21 April 2026
The regime’s policy of using nuclear ambiguity as a deterrent may have failed but it has realised it has other cards to play, while its neighbours are reappraising their approach to security
