Do Poland’s Shale Gas Wells Hold the Keys to Europe’s Future?

[Valin]

Via Meadia:

8/23/13

 

The shale revolution has largely been an American phenomenon. US geology is particularly suited to horizontal well drilling, and shale operations in countries like China and Australia have to contend with water scarcity. Europes shale has been blocked by the continents greens, and though the UK has made most of the regions headlines recently for its contentious debate over fracking, Poland may be the closest to joining the shale bandwagon.

 

According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), Poland has some of Europes most favorable infrastructure and public support for shale development. It also has a whopping 146 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of technically recoverable shale gas and 1.8 billion barrels of shale oil. As Ambrose Evans-Pritchard argues for the Telegraph, successful shale development in Poland could have profound implications for Europes energy future:

 

The geostrategic stakes are high. If Poland now buttressed by Britain and Romania can pull off its shale gambit, momentum will almost certainly become unstoppable in a string of other countries. We think the price of gas is going to come down from $11 [million metric British thermal units] to around $6.50, and this will make a huge difference because high gas prices are killing Europe, said Oisin Fanning, head of the AIM-listed driller San Leon Energy, which is exploring in the Baltic Basin near Gdansk.

(snip)

(snip)

 

Warsaw stands to gain much if it succeeds, as a domestic energy boon would help free it from the clutches of Moscow and the long-term, over-priced contracts it has with Gazprom. The rest of Europe would also benefit from an increase in drilling intensity in Poland. If the country acts as a proof-of-concept for fracking, the continents attitude towards shale might be swayed, which would be good news for both the EUs future energy security and its economic health.