Poland begins shale gas test drilling
PR dla Zagranicy
Peter Gentle
25.08.2011 13:49
Test drilling began this morning in central Poland into what is believed to be 100 billion cubic metres of shale gas.
The search is being led by Poland's state-controlled gas giant Polish Petroleum and Gas Mining (PGNiG) in conjunction with US company FX Energy.
The reserves have been cited as being located 6.5 km underground.
“We all believe that these deposits are filled with gas, and not brine,” Aleksander Nowak, a director of FX Energy's Polish branch told TVN 24 television station.
If protections are proved correct, Poland could become a major player in Europe's gas market, minimising its current dependence on Russia aenergy sources.
Environmentalists have protested that the shale gas technology – where rock is blasted with chemicals to release the gas locked inside, could cause harm to the area’s nature and hard locals’ health (nh/pg)