WSJ: Poland Sees Role for State, Foreign Firms in Shale Sector

Polish state-controlled companies from various industries should team up to look for shale gas in Poland, but foreign companies shouldn’t interpret this government policy as an attempt to squeeze them out of the sector, Mikolaj Budzanowski, the country’s treasury minister said Friday.

Polish state-controlled gas firm PGNiG SA earlier in February signed three letters of intent with state-controlled copper miner KGHM Polska Miedz SA and power firms PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna SA and Tauron Polska Energia SA, to jointly look for shale gas in northern Poland.

Mr. Budzanowski told an industry conference Friday it is “natural” for companies that either have licenses to look for shale gas or are gas consumers to join this capital-intensive effort.

He also said that drilling of shale gas test wells should be intensified and clustered in a single area.  MORE