Cuadrilla completes second main Lancashire well

Cuadrilla has finished drilling the second horizontal shale gas well at its exploration site at Preston New Road, Lancashire.

This second well, drilled through the Upper Bowland shale at an approximate depth of 2,100m below the surface, extends laterally for 750m through the shale gas reservoir.

The first horizontal well was completed in April through the Lower Bowland shale rock at approximately 2,300m below surface and extends laterally for some 800m.

A vertical pilot well was drilled last year to a depth of more than 2,700m through the Upper and Lower Bowland shales, with the data gathered informing the decisions in locating these first two horizontal wells. Cuadrilla has consent to drill up to four horizontal wells.

Francis Egan, chief executive of Cuadrilla, said: “We are very pleased to have successfully completed drilling the UK’s first two horizontal shale gas wells.

“Subject to hydraulic fracturing consent being granted by the Government we plan to fracture the shale rock around these wells over the coming months and test the flow rates of natural gas from the shale.

“Our objective is to demonstrate that natural gas will flow from the shale in commercially viable quantities. In the process we look forward to demonstrating that the UK’s huge shale gas resources can be safely produced and make a major contribution to improving the UK’s energy security, whilst reducing our gas import needs and providing economic and environmental benefit.”

Cuadrilla’s efforts at Preston New Road have attracted vehement opposition. In June the business was granted a High Court injunction to stop trespassing at the site

Cuadrilla will now start to dismantle the drilling rig, which will be returned to mainland Europe.

The site team will then start to prepare for the fracking phase. This will include an initial flow test of both wells for approximately six months, Cuadrilla said. The intention is for the site to be plugged into the local gas grid in 2019.

Your Comments

Read our comments policy

good news !

By Tannoy

This is great news.

Let’s get this gas out from under our feet and create high quality jobs and taxable revenue whilst reducing the amount we import from the likes of Qatar and Russia. Their environmental standards and human rights values are, shall we say, somewhat at odds with our own and Russia’s foreign policy objectives are directly at odds with the UK’s interests.

Why people seem happy that we hand them billions each year for gas when we could get the stuff safely from beneath our feat puzzles me greatly.

By Sceptical

“Great Britain benefits from highly diverse and flexible gas supply. Less than 1% of our gas comes from Russia, and we are in no way reliant on it”
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy March 17th 2018

By jon

Great news.

By Let's give it a go

This is a crime against the community and the planet. We do not need to do this at all. Pro-fracking propaganda (as within this articles comments) abounds.There is no social licence for fracking. This self serving government is a dictatorship. They imposed it upon us. Democracy is dead. No other political parties back it.

By DoctorLove

This is evil forcing it on our community. This government and Cuadrilla are disgusting to force this upon us. Our poor children and homes. I bet non of these positive comments are coming from local people are they

By Summer lea

How many wells will you need to make fracking comercially viable ?
And as for energy supply, we all know you will be using the Hydto carbons to make plastics !
Take your PONSI scheme elsewhere and stop decieving the people of Lancashire !

By Travelsofpan

Huge amounts of OUR precious water (for which I pay a sizeable and ever increasing bill!) is used in these procedures….how will they cope with the hosepipe ban from United Utilities? Our fragile little Planet is everyone’s responsibility, desecration for profit is stupid stupid stupid, the Capitalist system won’t bring rewards for locals, you will rue the day you rolled over for Quadrillo….heroines/hero all those who fought this, well done, keep going✊️❤️

By Cathy Wilson

Great news. For those whinging that it uses water. Yep it does. For which they pay a vastly inflated commercial price for the supply. As a user they are probably more profitable to UU than a domestic customer

By A Developer

DoctorLove: That’s what democracy is. You vote for a government based on a manifesto. They either do what they said they would, or they don’t. if they don’t, or they do things you don’t like in the meanwhile, you can choose not to vote for them next time. Any UK government is effectively a dictatorship for 5 years… or until the DUP changes its mind.

Fracking may be good, it may be bad. I don’t know. And I suspect neither do a lot of people who post about it.

By Fracking Netural

Related Articles

Sign up to receive the Place Daily Briefing

Join more than 13,000 property professionals and receive your free daily round-up of built environment news direct to your inbox

Subscribe

Join more than 13,000 property professionals and sign up to receive your free daily round-up of built environment news direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you are agreeing to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

"*" indicates required fields

Your Job Field*
Other regional Publications - select below