Shale revolution - reality or myth?

The UK Government recently announced that they were looking at pushing forward with their plans for granting licenses for exploratory drilling for Shale oil and gas across the UK. It is something that has been discussed for years, but with the need for energy security becoming more and more important, it is something that is playing on the minds of all politicians at present, irrespective if there is a general election pending in 2015.

The challenges for any company looking at these projects is not just that the geology is not as clear cut as to what they colleagues in the US have found and secondly, there is considerable resistance from the general public to having drilling rigs appear on their on doorsteps. The path ahead is unclear and in my mind I think it is unlikely that they will see the same proportionate levels of production as in the US. Nevertheless it is a concept which could provide another source of energy production that will counter the decline in output in the North Sea.