UK shale suffers potentially fatal blow
Explorers say they will work with the government to try to revive the nascent shale gas industry, but a new fracking moratorium makes it look like an uphill struggle
The UK government's imposition of a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in England brings to an end efforts to launch an industrial-scale shale gas industry in the country for the foreseeable future. The government said in early November that it was pausing all shale gas exploration in England “unless and until further evidence is provided that it can be carried out safely”. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland already have moratoriums or other blocking legislation in place on fracking, so the process is now prohibited, at least temporarily, in the whole of the UK. An interim report on the shale gas industry just published by the UK’s upstream regulator the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), whi
Also in this section
1 April 2026
Golden Pass’s startup offers QatarEnergy a timely boost but may also force a difficult choice between honouring disrupted contracts and capitalising on soaring spot LNG prices
1 April 2026
It is not a case of if or when, but the length and magnitude of economic damage from elevated oil prices
1 April 2026
The US-Iran conflict demonstrates the need for diversification in several senses of the word. It also exposes the limits of Washington applying pressure on major oil and gas producers it considers geopolitical adversaries
31 March 2026
Disappointing results in its bidding round are a reality check for Libya, and global exploration generally
