UK Edition
Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary, has said onshore fracking for gas is not the answer to high energy prices and the UK will instead push deeper into renewables and nuclear power to protect itself from the energy crisis.
Mr Kwarteng said in a tweet that extra supplies generated from untapped shale reserves under Britain would do little to bring prices down and in the long term “we need to move away from gas”.
He said that it would be “madness” to turn off existing domestic sources of gas, and vowed to continue support for the North Sea, but added: “The more cheap, clean power we generate at home, the less exposed we’ll be to global gas markets.”
The comments are likely to infuriate supporters of fracking who claim that embracing the controversial process would improve Britain’s strategic autonomy.
Wholesale gas prices have climbed fourfold in the UK since last summer due to a global shortage of natural gas supplies, with Russia’s war on Ukraine putting extra pressure on prices due to the risk of disruption of supplies to Europe.
Households are set to feel the effects in April when the price cap on energy bills will rise by 54pc – pushing average bills up £693 to £1,971.
It has fuelled huge debate over the pace of the UK’s shift away from fossil fuels to cut carbon emissions and whether the country should be producing more gas or finding alternative sources of energy.
Fracking supporters have argued the Government should lift its ban on the practice, which was introduced in 2019 due to concerns about the risk of earthquakes. The process involves blasting sand into rocks underground to release trapped gas.
The UK currently imports about half of its gas, mostly from Norway, with some also coming in from pipelines to Europe and in shipments from Qatar, Russia and others.
Writing on Twitter this morning, Mr Kwarteng said the UK was not facing security of supply problems but accepted it is facing price problems, saying: “Put simply: we have lots of gas from highly diverse and secure sources – but it is very expensive.”
He added: “We back North Sea production. Good for jobs, energy security, tax revenue to fund public services, and kick-starting a hydrogen economy and carbon capture and storage.
“However, additional North Sea production won’t materially affect the wholesale price (certainly not anytime soon).
“The wholesale price of gas has quadrupled in the UK and Europe. Additional UK production won’t materially affect the wholesale market price.
“This includes fracking – UK producers won’t sell shale gas to UK consumers below the market price. They’re not charities.”
Arguing the long-term solution was to move away from gas, the Business Secretary said that the Government was “reversing 30 years of drift” to back new nuclear projects, and “accelerating renewables”.
He said: “Remember: renewables are cheaper than gas. UK renewable capacity is up 500pc since 2010 – but way more to do.
“Now more than ever we must focus on generating cheaper, cleaner power in Britain, for Britain.
“All while helping our European allies move away from their dependency on Russian oil and gas. This is how we become energy self-sufficient in the long-term.”
Oil and gas are currently responsible for about 75pc of the UK’s energy supply. The Government wants to quadruple the amount of offshore wind capacity to 30GW by 2030 and has also introduced a new financing mechanism to try and encourage funding for new nuclear plants.
Last week, the Climate Change Committee, the Government’s climate change advisors, said it would back a presumption against new oil and gas exploration projects in the North Sea.
But it stopped short of issuing a full recommendation to that effect, saying the Government needed to consider security of supply and the effect on global emissions of UK domestic production was unclear.