LibDem manifesto pledge to oppose fracking “a reversal” says UKOOG

17 May 2017

UKOOG, the trade body for the onshore oil and gas industry, has today called into question the Liberal Democrat's Manifesto pledge to oppose fracking should they gain power at the upcoming general election.

Ken Cronin, chief executive of UKOOG said, "We are disappointed with the Liberal Democrats' vow to oppose fracking, which is a reversal from their position when in power when they believed it was 'in the national interest to move on from the arguments of zealots and vested interests, and start a debate about how best to proceed safely with shale gas exploration'.

"A ban on 'fracking' seriously inhibits the industry's ability to access the gas resource beneath our feet. Policy makers should remember that as well as producing nearly half of the UK's electricity and being a feedstock for industry, gas is used by 84% of our homes for heating1. Within the next two decades 75% of that gas is forecast to be supplied from outside the UK with serious economic and environmental consequences".

Contacts

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Notes to editors
1 Oil and Gas Authority, UKCS oil and gas production (and demand) projections https://www.ogauthority.co.uk/data-centre/data-downloads-and-publications/production-projections/; 27.1 million households in the UK (see ONS - https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/families/bulletins/familiesandhouseholds/2016)

About UKOOG:

UKOOG is the representative body for the UK onshore oil and gas industry, including exploration, production and storage. The organisation's objectives are to enhance the profile of the onshore industry, promote better and more open dialogue with key stakeholders, deliver industry wide initiatives and programmes and to ensure standards in safety, the environment and operations are maintained to the highest possible level. Membership is open to all companies active in the onshore industry including those involved in the supply chain. www.ukoog.org.uk