UK looks to fracking as cold snap exposes its poor energy supply
London — Britain’s natural gas fracking industry is using a cold snap that’s gripped large swathes of Europe this week and laid bare weaknesses in the UK’s energy supply to make its pitch. Britain’s natural gas market has been stretched to its limits as the coldest spell since 2010 tests the nation’s energy and transport network. UK pipeline manager National Grid Plc even urged industry to curb its gas usage while the cold weather persisted. As gas prices surged to record levels, industry bodies and Ineos Group called for Britain to improve energy security by producing more gas at home rather than rely on imports. "The UK is worryingly dependent on gas imports and this is forecast to increase to 80% by 2035," said Ken Cronin, CEO of industry body UK Onshore Oil and Gas. "The need to ensure we have our own homegrown source of gas rather than pursuing this continued over-reliance on imports has today become very evident."
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