WIREDGOV

Commenting on a report published recently by the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee on the potential economic impact of shale gas, WWF said that the Government must remain focused on the task of moving the UK rapidly to an efficient and low-carbon energy system.

Nick Molho, Head of Climate and Energy Policy at WWF-UK, said: “The Lords seemed to have overlooked the many serious analysts who have said that shale gas in the UK is unlikely to have much impact on either gas prices or the UK’s rising exposure to gas imports. 

“If we are genuinely going to reduce the UK’s vulnerability to future fossil fuel price shocks, the main priority must be to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels in the first place. 

“Moving rapidly towards an energy system that’s more efficient, low-carbon and better integrated with those of our European partners should therefore remain the UK’s highest national priority when it comes to energy policy.” 

WWF pointed in particular to research by National Grid [2] which shows that moving towards an efficient and low-carbon energy system could cut the UK’s gas consumption by 40% to 50% by 2030 compared to what was consumed in 2010. WWF argued that this would be a genuine game changer for the UK’s energy security and would provide more protection to consumers against volatile gas prices. 


Notes to editors: 

1. Major analysts such as the International Energy Agency and Bloomberg New Energy Finance have repeatedly made the point that key differences between the US and the UK, which aren’t just about differences in regulatory regimes but also in terms of geology, population density and property rights, mean that UK shale gas is unlikely to be extracted fast enough, cheaply enough and in enough volume to make much of a difference to the UK’s gas price and the UK’s exposure to gas imports.

2. In its 10 year Annual Gas Statement in 2012, National Grid, the gas grid operator, found that meeting the UK’s existing renewables and emissions targets would cut our gas consumption by around 40% by 2030 compared to 2010 levels, a figure that could increase to 50% under a more ambitious but feasible roll out of low-carbon technologies and efficiency infrastructure:http://www.nationalgrid.com/NR/rdonlyres/E60C7955-5495-4A8A-8E80-8BB4002F6 02F/58097/GasTenYearStatement2013.pdf 

3. The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) recently concluded that the UK could save between £25bn and £45bn by moving to a low-carbon power sector by 2030 compared to remaining locked in a system mainly based on gas: http://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/1720_EMR_report_web.pd f 

For more information:

George Smeeton, Media Relations Manager WWF-UK
Tel: 01483 412 388, mob: 07917 052 948, email: GSmeeton@wwf.org.uk, twitter: @GSmeeton