Forbes: Why Europe Really Has To Drill For Shale And Quickly
There’s a fascinating little report here about the effects of shale gas on the European energy market.
The conclusion to be drawn from it is that Europe really does need to be drilling for shale gas and quickly. The reason for this though is that the US has already decided to do so: and it’s the effects of the US shale revolution that mean that Europe’s got to follow.
We could start by saying that well, no, we want to reduce carbon emissions. Thus we shouldn’t drill for another hydrocarbon, however cheap it would be or however much that would reduce dependence upon imports and so on. We should make the leap direct from current energy systems to renewables. Which is a fair enough ambition if your tastes run that way: but that doesn’t mean that the real world is going to act according to your desires.