Cuadrilla drilling rejected in blow to UK fracing industry

THOMAS BIESHEUVEL

LONDON (Bloomberg) -- Cuadrilla Resources Ltd., the driller whose fracing ambitions have sparked protests, was refused permission to drill in northwest England in the latest blow to the UK’s nascent shale-gas industry.

Lancashire Council voted on Monday to reject the company’s plans to drill at its Preston New Road site, according to the authority’s Twitter feed. Council officials had previously recommended drilling at the site be approved.

The decision comes after the council last week rejected Cuadrilla’s plans for a well at the nearby Roseacre site and is the latest in a series of blows to the company. Cuadrilla was forced to scale back drilling proposals earlier this year after council planners opposed its applications for eight wells at the two sites, citing concerns over noise and traffic.

Opposition to hydraulic fracturing has stymied development of the UK’s shale industry since a drilling moratorium was lifted in 2012. The UK government has promoted fracing by cutting taxes and relaxing planning rules to try to lower reliance on imported gas.