In late September, INEOS announced plans to give 6% of its shale gas revenues to the local community, with 4% going to home & land owners situated above the wells and 2% going to the wider community.
Then, in early October, INEOS instructed You Gov to ask a representative sample of the population the following questions:
Question 1:
Shale gas is natural gas trapped under sedimentary rock, which is extracted using a method known as hydraulic fracturing or “fracking”. There are large reserves of shale gas in parts of the United Kingdom.
Generally speaking, do you support or oppose the extraction of shale gas?
| NW ENGLAND | SCOTLAND | UNITED KINGDOM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support (%) | 40% | 36% | 40% |
| Oppose (%) | 37% | 46% | 34% |
| Don't Know | 22% | 17% | 24% |
| Sample Size | 1094 | 1008 | 6216 |
Question 2:
Recently, a company pledged that if they were successful in applying for licences, they would give 6% of all revenues received to nearby local communities, homeowners and landowners.
If this was the case and they consulted with the community about the technology they used, would you support or oppose the extraction of shale gas?
| NW ENGLAND | SCOTLAND | UNITED KINGDOM | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support (%) | 50% | 43% | 50% |
| Oppose (%) | 32% | 41% | 31% |
| Don't Know | 18% | 15% | 20% |
| Sample Size | 1094 | 1008 | 6216 |
Jim Ratcliffe, the founder of INEOS and the architect of the 6% offer says, “We believe that Shale gas will transform UK manufacturing and it is important that the British people support it. This survey shows that our approach - which emphasizes safety and the sharing of the rewards - is the right way to go and is gaining traction with people”.
Media contacts:
Richard Longden (INEOS): 0041 21 627 7063 or 0041 7996 26123
Mark Killick (Media Zoo): 020 7384 6980 or 07836 634449
Andrew McLachlan (Media Zoo): 020 7384 6980 or 07931 377162
Hannah Brandstaetter (Media Zoo):020 7384 6980 or 07896 776554
Editor's notes:
Full details of the You Gov shale gas survey can be found on its website.
Please note that percentages do not always add up to 100 due to rounding.
INEOS currently holds majority stakes in two PEDL licences and is bidding for more.
INEOS is investing £400 million in bringing US shale gas to Scotland.
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Fieldwork was undertaken between 7th - 13th October 2014. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults, all adults from North West England and all Scottish adults.