UK offers explorers 159 onshore blocks in latest licensing round
LONDON — The Oil & Gas Authority (OGA)—the UK’s oil and gas regulator—announced Thursday that 159 onshoreblocks under the 14th Onshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round are being formally offered to successful applicants. These blocks will be incorporated into 93 onshore licenses.
A Petroleum Exploration and Development Licence (PEDL) does not itself give any direct permission for operations to begin. A PEDL grants the licensee exclusivity over an area of land for onshore hydrocarbon exploration, appraisal and extraction. The exclusivity applies to both conventional and unconventional operations.
The UK has a long history of onshore gas exploration, and has developed a robust regulatory system to ensure that any such operations will be carried out to the highest standards of safety and environmental protection.
Before a PEDL licensee can begin operations, they must be granted a number of further permissions and consents. These include, for example, planning permission, environmental permits from the Environment Agency, scrutiny of well design by the Health and Safety Executive, and OGA consents under the terms of the PEDL.
Around 75% of the 159 blocks being offered relate to unconventional shale oil or gas, and additional regulatory requirements apply to this kind of activity.
“I am pleased that the 14th Onshore Round attracted strong interest and a high quality of proposed work programs. This round enables a significant amount of the UK’s shale prospects to be taken forward to be explored and tested,” OGA Chief Executive Andy Samuel said. “Upon acceptance of these offers, applicants will be issued with licenses and will be able to begin planning their future strategies for exploration activities.”
“Now is the time to press ahead and get exploration underway so that we can determine how much shale gas there is and how much we can use,” Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom said.
石油圈