Australian exploration company Tamboran Resources said it plans drill a borehole in Co Fermanagh next month to test for natural gas.
The borehole near Belcoo will be used to collect rock samples and will not involve fracking, Tamboran said. However, if the samples show commercially viable levels of gas, Tamboran will begin a process that could lead to fracking.
Tamboran said its intention is to verify that the elements necessary for natural gas and its recovery are contained in the shale in Co Fermanagh.
The test hole will be about 15cm wide and 750m deep, with the drilling operation due to be completed in about 30 days.
Rock samples will be examined on site and then sent for laboratory analysis. This will enable the company to decide if the rock is likely to contain enough natural gas to make it a viable proposition, Tamboran said. "This is fact-finding, not fracking," Tony Bazley, director of Tamboran Resources (UK) said. "If Co Fermanagh is home to a significant natural gas resource that could provide Northern Ireland with decades of a local secure energy supply, then we believe the people have a right to know," he added.
Environment Minister Mark Durkan said there was no planning application for fracking.
‘Fracking’
“I have been consistently clear on this issue: granting permissions relating to fracking operations will only take place when it has been supported by very strong evidence which indicates that fracking is safe for public health and the environment,” he added.
Sinn Féin energy spokesman Phil Flanagan called on Mr Durkan to subject Tamboran’s proposed drilling to the full planning process.“This proposal must be subject to a statutory planning application to allow local people and experts to have their say on the proposal,” he said.
Mr Flanagan said it is not good enough for Tamboran to say this application is not for fracking.
“We need to know what the long-term impacts of this borehole will be for the health of local people and on the local environment,” he said. – (Additional reporting: PA)
