Expert to urge businesses to back shale development

An expert in the environment management industry is to detail the reasons why Lancashire businesses should back shale development in a speech later this month.

Lee Petts, managing director of Remsol, will talk at the North West Shale Supply Chain Conference, organised by the North West Energy Taskforce, on April 24 in Blackpool

Lee is a shale gas wastewater specialist and his company works with Cuadrilla. He has previously given speeches for the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management and been called on by the House of Lords to provide evidence to a shale gas inquiry.

In his speech this month, the Preston businessman will call for government and business groups to work together to ensure that the people and businesses of Lancashire and the wider north west are positioned to make the most of the opportunities that a developing shale gas industry could be responsible for in the region.

He will outline how shale development will benefit the economy in a number of ways, including generating tax receipts from the sale of hydrocarbons, creating jobs all along the supply chain and generating further tax receipts from supply chain firms paying corporation tax.

This is in addition to the wider energy security and environmental considerations.

He said: “Creating a local, domestic supply chain that is largely populated with SMEs – that will need to grow and take on new people to cope with the additional demand – is the most obvious way to extract maximum value from this industry.

“But Lancashire businesses must not be complacent: unless they act now and secure their place in the supply chain, it’s possible we’ll see larger and more established players entering the UK market from abroad.”

Remsol has identified, tested and proven a safe and reliable way to deal with the wastewater generated in the hydraulic fracturing process.

Lee added: “As an early mover with a prominent role in Cuadrilla’s supply chain, my company has already benefited directly from shale gas exploration. Provided that it continues to be extracted safely and responsibly, I’d like to see other businesses follow my lead, helping to establish Lancashire as the centre of UK shale gas development and replicating Aberdeen’s success in the North Sea oil sector.

Lee will be joining The Rt. Hon. Michael Fallon MP, the joint Minister for Business and Enterprise and Minister of State for Energy at the event.

Lee will reprising his speaking role at the CIWEM annual conference which was on April 9 in London http://www.ciwem.org/events/annual-conference.aspx

For more information on NWETF and the conference visit www.nwenergy.org.uk

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 Issued 14th April 2014