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| Fracking in the pipeline as exploration blocks offered to firms | |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| The Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) - the UK's oil and gas regulator - has announced that 27 blocks of land will be formally offered to fracking companies for exploration. | |
| The exploration blocks include areas in the Midlands and the North East. | |
| A second group of 132 further blocks could be granted following a consultation. | |
| It comes after Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said planning decisions on fracking would be speeded up. | It comes after Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said planning decisions on fracking would be speeded up. |
| The blocks of land, which are typically 10 sq-km, include areas near Lincoln, Nottingham, Sheffield and Preston. | |
| Firms including Ineos have been given the exclusive right to explore for oil and gas, including fracking. | |
| However, whether exploration can actually go ahead is subject to local planning consent. | |
| UK Energy Minister Lord Bourne said: "Keeping the lights on and powering the economy is not negotiable, and these industries will play a key part in providing secure and reliable energy to UK homes and businesses for decades to come." | UK Energy Minister Lord Bourne said: "Keeping the lights on and powering the economy is not negotiable, and these industries will play a key part in providing secure and reliable energy to UK homes and businesses for decades to come." |
| But Greenpeace campaigner Daisy Sands said that the award of the licences was "the starting gun to the fight for the future of our countryside". | But Greenpeace campaigner Daisy Sands said that the award of the licences was "the starting gun to the fight for the future of our countryside". |
| "Hundreds of battles will spring up to defend our rural landscapes from the pollution, noise and drilling rigs that come with fracking." | "Hundreds of battles will spring up to defend our rural landscapes from the pollution, noise and drilling rigs that come with fracking." |
| Ineos said it had been given three new shale gas exploration licences covering an area of approximately 250 sq-km in the East Midlands. | |
| "This is a further significant step for Ineos in its plan to become the leading player in the UK shale gas industry," it said in a statement. |