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Paul Wheeler - fracking good news 2014 is shaping to be an interesting year. Well done to the LGA for helping to shape the debate on the development of our domestic shale gas reserve. They have been ably assisted by Lancashire CC who have created a powerful all party coalition and put the Government on the spot on their currently inadequate offer on the division of the financial returns on the development of shale gas. All of this would be fantastic if the national debate on energy had not been hijacked by an bunch of angry green activists whose idea of a debate is to prevent companies and their workforce from carrying out lawful exploration. The current manifestation at Barton Moss in Salford is likely to cost the council tax payers of Greater Manchester half a million pounds in additional police costs for what is effectively a party political broadcast for the Green Party. Much of the national debate seems immune to rational argument but most reasonable people are agreed that future energy policy will rely on gas to provide energy needs and prevent blackouts. One other fact hopefully agreed is that we currently spend £12bn a year (interestingly, the same amount that George Osborne says we need to cut from public spending) on importing gas from those havens of democracy – Russia and Qatar. That is £12bn that is exempt from UK taxes and which is not available to create our own Sovereign Wealth Fund. So, whatever anyone thinks of renewable energy (and I have doubts about all those windmills – essentially a subsidy to rich landlords) we will need gas for the foreseeable future. The only question to ask is – ‘do we need our own supplies or continue to rely on some pretty dubious sources from overseas?' I know that Caroline Lucas and others bang on that development of shale gas won't lead to a reduction in energy prices but the real question is can it have an impact on how much energy costs are likely to INCREASE in the next decade. Largely because we have locked ourselves into contracts to support renewable sources of energy prices are set to DOUBLE for the ordinary consumer. Our own source of gas can hopefully act as a break on greedy energy companies and naïve government ministers. So if the LGA and Lancashire have set the right tone, who else needs to join the debate? It is about time the trade unions have something useful to say about the continuing loss of jobs in energy-intensive industries. We really need to change the media profile of this issue. We have to move away for a ‘debate' between an angry green and a nervous politician just discussing some dodgy facts about flames from taps. Next time, perhaps, Newsnight should invite one of those' hard-working families' we all love and ask them what they think about energy prices doubling in 10 years because of green policies. That is a debate I would like to see. Cllr Michael Jones, leader of Cheshire East Council ‘Our focus is on geothermal, not fracking' The Government's proposals to develop the shale gas industry are a common sense response, helping address energy poverty and keeping customers' bills down. So, if there are shale gas deposits to be tapped, it would be silly for the UK as a whole not to try and do so. We only have to look to America to see that fracking for shale gas has transformed the domestic gas market, lowering consumer prices and improving America's energy security. Therefore, I am not anti-fracking. Good luck to those authorities planning to take up the Government's offer to allow councils to keep 100% off the business rates for shale gas projects, rather than the usual 50%. It is great to see a government putting in place a vision to end fuel poverty and ministers are right to incentivise local authorities to embrace fracking where there is an interest in developing the potential. But, the particular energy projects each local authority chooses to pursue are a matter of ‘horses for courses'. Although the British Geological Survey estimates there may be considerable shale gas reserves in the North of England, Cheshire East is in an almost unique position of having what we think is an even bigger opportunity. Our authority sits on the Cheshire Basin, with enormous potential for the extraction of geothermal energy. We believe this is a ‘game-changer' for the borough, providing heat and energy that is reliable, renewable and cheap on a significant scale and we are in talks with the Department of Energy and Climate Change to help us develop the proposal. We are also looking to explore the potential for Advanced Thermal Treatment in dealing with our biodegradable municipal waste, again, helping us meet our CO2 responsibilities, but also recovering energy we can use to benefit our residents and keep bills down. So let me be clear: there are parts of the country where local councils will welcome ministers' offer to benefit from shale gas extraction. However, our main focus as a council will be on maximising the exciting potential of other technologies, transforming our borough into a national and international leader in geothermal and advanced thermal treatment instead. Paul Wheeler is director of the Political Skills Forum and Cllr Michael Jones is leader of Cheshire East Council

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ECONOMIC GROWTH

Are shale gas benefits all they're fracked up to be?

By Cllr Michael Jones, Paul Wheeler | 28 January 2014

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