Poland Shale Gas: 26 Wells and Counting

Polish Environment Ministry has reported that 26 shale gas wells were drilled so far, ten of them in 2012. According to the Ministry, further six are in the process of being drilled.

The Ministry anticipates, that by the end of this year 20 new drillings will be launched and informs. From 120 to 310 wells are scheduled to 2021.

The most active players are 3Legs Resources (with ConoccoPhillips), BNK Petroleum, Talisman Energy and Marathon Oil, as well as two Polish companies Orlen Upstream and PGNiG.

In spite of inconclusive results from test drillings, news of ExxonMobil holding up further exploration and new, discouraging reports on Polish recoverable resources, our sources in the companies operating in Poland stress, that at this stage, uncertainty is not the most important obstacle hampering exploration efforts.

The industry is still awaiting the announcement of draft new hydrocarbon bill, promised last year by the Polish government. In addition some managers at foreign companies point to red tape, while for domestic executives primary problem is financing.