Explorer plays down Weald shale oil potential
The reserve potential in the shale-oil well in southern England has provoked excitement, but experts are urging caution
Claims that a shale-oil well drilled near London's Gatwick airport indicated the reserve potential of southern England's Weald basin could be considerably larger than previously thought created headlines and sent the share prices of companies involved soaring. UK Oil & Gas Investments (UKOG), the minnow that made the claim, has since scaled back its estimates, while industry experts have urged caution, saying it is too early in the exploration phase to make confident forecasts about the extent of reserves, let alone the prospects of extracting them commercially. UKOG said on 9 April that analysis by US firm Nutech of results from the Horse Hill-1 well drilled last year on licence area P

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