Energy industry Blow to fracking firms as UK insists on financial checks Companies seeking exploration rights need to prove they can bear clean-up costs as business secretary tightens consent rules Cuadrilla drilling site in Lancashire, England. The operating company, Third Energy UK Gas, has overdue accounts for the period ending 31 December 2016. Show Hide Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is a way of extracting natural gas from shale rock formations that are often deep underground. Clark said: “The government considers that the financial resilience of a company wishing to hydraulically fracture is a relevant consideration. “This latest news reveals another reason to distrust the fracking firms – they can’t even get their financial house in order.

Source: The Guardian January 25, 2018 18:11 UTC