The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Fracking can be the new
Exclusive: Shale can fill economy ‘holes’ – Ratcliffe
The founder of chemical giant Ineos said fracking in Scotland could boost the country’s economy in areas where the North Sea oil and gas industry is “leaving holes”.
Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe The first shipment of US shale to Scotland has been branded an “unacceptable" way to prop up the Grangemouth plant near Falkirk.
Friends of the Earth also criticised the Ineos collaboration with Range Resources after it was fined for environmental pollution in America.
The group’s head of campaigns, Mary Church, said: “To pursue a future for the Ineos plant based on the consumption of ever more fossil fuels is utterly irresponsible in the context of what we know about the devastating impacts of climate change.
“If Jim Ratcliffe was really concerned about the future of the Grangemouth plant and its workers he would be planning for its transition to a lowcarbon model. spoke exclusively to the Press and Journal’s sister website Energy Voice as more than 27,000 cubic metres of ethane made its way to Grangemouth from the US for the first time.
Mr Ratcliffe said the landmark moment for the company – which has been
“We urge the Scottish Government to act swiftly to ban fracking and start planning seriously for a fair transition to a lowcarbon economy across all sectors.
“Fracking should not happen here in Scotland, and our country should not profit from it happening anywhere else.”
Earlier this week Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn revealed his party would ban fracking if elected.
The Scottish Government has a moratorium on fracking.
Following the first delivery of ethane, the Scottish Conservatives said the SNP should abandon its “infantile" objection to shale gas extraction.
Shadow finance secretary Murdo Fraser said: in the pipeline for six years – was a “brick in the wall” for the site, which was lossmaking when Ineos bought it from BP.
The arrival of the shale gas has been dubbed the “Grangemouth Renaissance” by Ineos, which has built the UK’s largest “The arrival of the first shale shipment is extremely welcome news for Scotland’s economy.
“It guarantees jobs at a major employer, and helps showcase to the world that Scotland can become a centre for shale refinery.
“However, all this potential will be wasted if the SNP continues its infantile objection to fracking.
“There is a startlingly blatant hypocrisy in the Scottish Government welcoming the arrival of shale, yet ruling Scotland out of ever generating its own.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said it would continue to support Grangemouth and said the results of its investigation into fracking could be expected next year. ethane gas storage tank as part of the project.
A fleet of eight dragonclass ships was also built to carry the gas from Pennsylvania to the company’s headquarters in Norway and the UK through a “virtual pipeline”.
Mr Ratcliffe said: “Scotland at the moment, if you look at the economy, it’s operating at a trade deficit which means it’s spending more than it’s earning.
“Historically in Scotland the North Sea has created a lot of value for the Scottish economy but the North Sea is in decline so things will get worse, rather than better,
“Start planning seriously for a fair transition to a low-carbon economy” “Arrival of the shale gas has been dubbed the Grangemouth Renaissance”
from the point of view of what the North Sea can contribute.
“It just looks like a rational conclusion to me that shale gas could step in where the North Sea is leaving holes in the Scottish economy and maybe take the Scottish economy to a place where it’s in surplus rather than in deficit.
“I think the North Sea peaked in the year 2000 and today it’s producing less than 50% peak rate since 2000 and the forecast today is in 10 years time it will be less than 20%. That doesn’t mean there will be no hydrocarbons coming out of the North Sea, it will still have oil and gas coming out of it but not in the quantities that the UK requires.
“But there will be interesting opportunities in the North Sea in oil and gas and those are some of the things we are looking, at but it simply won’t sustain the UK needs. We already are a net importer of gas, a net importer of oil.”
The ethane being shipped to Europe originates from the Marcellus Shale in western Pennsylvania.
Ineos revealed yesterday the next stage of the project would be to create a chemical “cluster” at the Grangemouth site and work with Scottish Enterprise to create a new home for chemical and other types of manufacturers.
The founder of Ineos also said the company did not see a significant difference between conventional oil and gas and fracking.
He said a “vocal minority” was opposed to it but the success of US shale was evidence of UK potential.
Mr Ratcliffe said: “They banned all work in respect