Poland’s new environment minister may change proposed shale gas regulations to speed up exploration of the fuel after holding talks with investors and government members next week.
“If I decide that amendments are needed, I intend to present a final version within weeks, not months,” Maciej Grabowski, appointed to the post on Nov. 27, said at his first news conference Thursday. “Investors have been waiting for this for a very long time and they won’t speed up works without stable regulation.”
The ministry’s proposals last year for a state-run fund to participate in exploration ventures raised objections among investors searching for the fuel as well as other cabinet members. Meanwhile, drilling has slowed and foreign companies including Marathon Oil Corp. and Talisman Energy Inc. left Poland this year.
Discussions with investors will address the role and supervision of the state-run fund as well as investors’ concerns about new regulations, Grabowski said.
Disagreements between the Treasury and Environment Ministries over the state fund, called NOKE, have delayed works over the shale gas regulations, newspaper Parkiet reported on Sept. 9.
The nation has granted about 100 licenses to foreign and domestic drillers including Chevron Corp. to tap unconventional resources, ranked by U.S. Energy Information Administration in 2011 as Europe’s biggest, hoping to cut its dependence on supplies from Russia.
Recommended Reading
Golar LNG Enters $1.6B EPC Agreement for FLNG Project
2024-09-18 - Golar said the floating LNG vessel has a liquefaction capacity of 3.5 million tons of LNG per annum and is expected to be delivered in fourth-quarter 2027.
Bayou Midstream Secures New Equity Commitment from EIV Capital
2024-09-18 - Bayou Midstream II’s commitment from EIV Capital follows Bayou’s predecessor company's successful exit of Bakken infrastructure in 2024 to Bridger Pipeline.
Energy Transfer Says La Porte Pipeline Fire is Burning Itself Out
2024-09-18 - Analysts said they suspect that the pipeline is Energy Transfer’s Justice pipeline, and that news of the blaze has sent prices of propane and butane up since markets closed on Sept. 13.
AltaGas Prices $900MM Junior Notes Offer After Tidewater Deal
2024-09-17 - The offering follows AltaGas’ Aug. 31 announcement that it acquired multiple midstream, storage and terminals from Tidewater Midstream and Infrastructure Ltd. for CA$650 million (US$480 million).
Energy Transfer Confirms La Porte Fire, Report of 'Unknown' Vehicle
2024-09-16 - Energy Transfer acknowledged reports of a vehicle striking a valve on a natural gas liquids line, potentially leading to a large fire in La Porte, Texas, on the morning of Sept. 16.