Cable questions UK fracking potential
6 Sep 2013
Business secretary Vince Cable today dismissed the government’s backing of shale gas development as an obsession of Westminster politicians.
Speaking at the Offshore Europe oil and gas exhibition in Aberdeen, former Shell economist Cable implied politicians’ lack of understanding of hydraulic fracturing was behind the government’s enthusiasm for the technology.
“Lots of people in Westminster are only interested in one technology that they think is new & transformative: fracking,” said Cable, speaking at a conference session on future technology for North Sea oil and gas.
“We all know that it isn’t new and may or may not be transformative. Today I have seen offshore technologies that really are.”
Cable went on to praise various cutting-edge offshore technologies including Aberdeen-based SPEX Group’s supercomputer and a Shell oil technique for replacing sections of blocked pipelines that he called “the North Sea equivalent of open-heart surgery”.
The business secretary also used the example of fracking to defend the government’s lack of hands-on involvement in oil and gas technology research and development (R&D).
“We don’t want to politicise the process of R&D and we have been very careful to take an arm’s length approach through the creation of the Technology Strategy Board (TSB),” said Cable.
“Fracking is a good example of technology where all politicians are getting beaten up on it, and you have to protect R&D from that by using the independent TSB and not allowing politicians to get involved.”
