ENEX: Fraccing concerns unfounded
For immediate release
June 9, 2011
ENEX
Fraccing concerns out of perspective
Attending the inaugural EnergyNZ ENEX event for the oil and natural gas industry, currently on in Taranaki, Petroleum Association (PEPANZ) chair John Bay says concerns over hydraulic fracturing, or fraccing, is out of perspective to the actual practice in New Zealand, which is uncommon.
“Underground hydraulic fracturing has been done around the world since 1947 and is a well-known industry practice, but few oil or gas wells are actually fracced.
“More than 700 wells have been drilled in New Zealand so far, and less than three dozen have been fracced in the history of exploration in New Zealand.”
While there is much natural seepage of natural gas on New Zealand’s East Coast there has never been a fracced well, he adds.
“Fraccing protesters are trying to compare shallow drilling for natural gas in the eastern US states with drilling here, and there’s no comparison. It is scaremongering by applying overseas issues where they don’t exist in New Zealand.
“What small fraccing has
been done in New Zealand has been at depths from 1000 metres
up to 3000 metres. It is impossible for the fracture that
is created to go from the reservoir to the surface. Mother
Nature rarely has that sort of horse power even with an
earthquake. We certainly don’t.”
Linking fraccing to
offshore deep drilling is just a fallacy, says Bay. “It
almost never happens offshore. It is just too expensive to
develop offshore to justify trying to improve marginal
prospects by fraccing, as you might consider
onshore.”
ENEX opened today [June 9] at the TSB Stadium in New Plymouth, with 60 stands and some 550 participants, including those from the engineering, educational and health and safety sectors.
Kiwi-owned ENEX is a joint venture between EnergyNZ magazine publisher Contrafed Publishing and event specialist Conferenz.
Further
information:
Visit the ENEX website www.enex.co.nz for more
information.
ENDS