Fracking firm renews its call for regulations on earth tremors to be reviewed

FRACKING IN Lancashire has revealed a “rich reservoir of recoverable high quality natural gas present”, the company behind the exploration has said.

But Cuadrilla renewed its calls for regulations on tremors caused by the controversial process to be reviewed and revised to allow it to fully test and produce gas from its operations.

The energy firm, which started fracking at its site at Preston New Road in October, said drilling, hydraulic fracturing and flow testing of the first horizontal well had yielded “highly encouraging” results.

Chief executive Francis Egan said: “The natural gas flowing to the surface from the shale has a very high methane content, which means it could be delivered into the local gas grid for the benefit of local consumers with minimal processing required.”

But Cuadrilla said the limits set for the level of seismic activity allowed before there must be a halt during fracking had severely constrained the volume of sand that could be injected into the shale rock as part of the process.

Mr Egan said the well had only been partially tested, with just two of 41 stages installed along the horizontal section of the well fractured fully as designed and less than 14 per cent of the planned sand injected into the rock.

Natural gas flowed back from the shale at a peak rate of 200,000 standard cubic feet per day and a stable rate of some 100,000 cubic feet a day. The data indicates a potential initial flow rate range of between 3m and 8m standard cubic feet per day.

The Government has supported fracking in the UK, but environmental campaigners oppose the process which they say can cause pollution and quakes and undermine efforts to tackle climate change.

Cuadrilla and energy giant Ineos, another company planning to frack for shale, have both called for a review of the tremor limits but energy minister Claire Perry has indicated there are no plans to alter the rules.