What do new ‘right of access’ fracking rules mean for local land owners and communities?

The government has introduced new proposals to provide automatic rights of access to privately owned land in a bid to simplify the procedure for accessing underground shale gas and oil resources.

Under the current regulations, oil and gas extraction companies do not have automatic rights of access to drill under privately owned land, and permission must be obtained from the landowner prior to commencing drilling.

If permission is refused, companies must then apply for access to the land through the Secretary of State, which can result in significant and costly delays.

However the government is currently consulting on new proposals to allow companies extracting shale gas and oil to explore their potential deep underground without obtaining the landowner’s consent.

Companies are still required to obtain all other necessary permission prior to accessing underground land.

The new rules propose automatic access rights for shale gas and oil extraction occurring in land at least 300 metres below the surface.

The changes also include voluntary payments of £20,000 from the companies to communities which lie above lateral wells extending by more than 200 metres, which is in addition to a £100,000 community payment per drilling site.

The government will also consider the introduction of a public notification system under which the companies would set out drilling proposals along with details of the voluntary payments.

The consultation is expected to run until August 2014.

Exploratory drilling in the Bowland shale gas reserves is currently assessing the viability of fracking in the North West after the British Geological Survey revealed that approximately 1,300 trillion cubic feet of shale gas is located in the North of England.

Cuadrilla Resources has confirmed plans to drill up to four new wells after applying for fracking permission in Lancashire in May. The company already has eight sites across Lancashire and now intends to target Preston New Road and Roseacre Wood to build two additional sites.

The proposed rules are expected to speed up the introduction of drilling in the UK, where shale gas reserves are estimated to be worth £140 billion in the Lancashire area alone.

For more information on the new proposals please contact Harrison Drury’s energy sector specialist Katie Kozlowska on 01772 258321 or Katie.Kozlowska@harrison-drury.com