UK frackers are running out of time
by Damian Carrington Environment editor from Environment | The Guardian on (#3BM9P)
Binding carbon commitments and the falling cost of renewables could prove a perfect storm for investors
The UK's shale gas industry is in a race against time to establish itself before climate change regulations shut it down. As its stands, the frackers are off the pace.
With no wells yet tested for gas flow, the industry does not yet know if large-scale production is possible or what the cost of the gas will be, and it won't know until 2020 at best. Protests and planning problems have delayed exploration, but the real difficulty is the UK's legally binding carbon targets.
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