Cuadrilla’s Application Approved by Lancashire County Council

UK-focused shale gas companies registered step forward over the last days, with Egdon moving closer to the acquisition of Alkane’s licences and Lancashire County Council validating and accepting the application of Cuadrilla Resources.

"We are delighted to have obtained consent from DECC enabling the transfer of licences in Alkane’s shale-gas interests. Following this transfer, Egdons prospective acreage in UK shale-gas will nearly double to 140,176 acres, creating a significant new UK shale-gas player," Mark Abbott, Managing Director of Egdon commented in a note released on Tuesday.

Egdon’s Placing and Open Offer was said to become effective on 12 June 2014.

In the while, Cuadrilla’s application for up to four shale gas exploration wells at Preston New Road has been accepted. Consultations regarding the proposal will soon follow. Cuadrilla has hypothesized a 20% reduction in water use and less HGV movements. At the same time, the company is trying to meet local authorities’ proposals, also limiting noise and transportation.

“The work we’ve undertaken for both the Environmental Impact and Environmental Risk Assessments has been tremendously comprehensive. We’ve been using best practice standards throughout our work and we’ve covered a full exploration life-cycle as well as considering cumulative impacts in both our scope and analysis work,” Arup’s Project Director, Des Correia commented in a communiqué published on Wednesday.