The government’s Gas Strategy foresees 26GW of new capacity being required by 2030 – and admits more could be needed – and may offer tax breaks for shale gas exploration.
It also announced a new Office for Unconventional Gas and Oil, leading to immediate speculation that fracking is set for a significant role in the UK.
The country’s Conservative finance minister, chancellor George Osborne, is a high-profile supporter of gas and has fought several behind-the-scenes battles with those more sympathetic to renewable energy within the UK’s coalition government – not least its Liberal Democrat energy secretary Ed Davey.
Although
