Cuadrilla Resources

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Cuadrilla Resources is an energy company set up in 2007 and based in Lancashire. It has pioneered the shale gas industry's efforts to kick-start fracking across the UK, employing a raft of heavyweight lobbyists and enjoying easy access to government ministers.

Background

Cuadrilla is a UK-registered company privately owned by its management team and two investors, the Australian drilling and engineering company AJ Lucas (43%) and former BP CEO John Browne's Riverstone LLC. It is backed by British Gas.

The firm employs 'some 70 staff in the UK both directly employed and through contractors, mostly based at the well sites. The main contracting partner in the UK is PR Marriott Drilling Ltd based in Chesterfield, which has over 60 years of drilling experience in Britain'. [1]

Cuadrilla reported it made a loss of $17.68 million in 2015. [2]

History of fracking

'Earth tremors' in Blackpool

Anti-fracking protest at Balcombe in 2013

In November 2011, a damning report commissioned by Cuadrilla revealed the company's own fracking operations at Banks, near Merseyside, were the 'probable' cause of 50 separate earthquake tremors in the Blackpool area from earlier in the year.

The announcement proved controversial for the entire industry, and soon forced the company to stop work after the government implemented a moratorium on fracking while it reviewed the implications of the report. [3] This was later lifted in December 2012, despite mounting public concern. [4]

Cuadrilla's attempt to resume exploration elsewhere in summer 2013 at Balcombe in Sussex were met by strong protests from local residents and campaign groups. In a significant victory for the anti-fracking lobby and local communities, Cuadrilla announced in October 2013 that it would pull out from its site in Blackpool after the continued disruption made production commercially non-viable. [5]

The battle for Lancashire

Protests outside Lancashire County Hall in Preston 2015

In July 2013, Cuadrilla announced it would divest its focus from West Sussex to the Fylde area of Lancashire. [6] The company's lengthy application process to frack in Lancashire was the subject of much protest, and saw a series of government and lobbying initiatives successfully over-ride local democracy.

In February 2014, the company submitted applications to drill and frack eight shale wells at sites in Preston New Road and at nearby Roseacre Wood, [7]however these were rejected by members of Lancashire County Council's development control committee in June 2015. [8]The company appealed the decision.

Six months after Lancashire council's refusal, Conservative ministers gave themselves new powers to override local council planning decisions. [9] A subsequent public inquiry into Cuadrilla's appeal against the rejected planning applications, held in February - March 2016, saw the determination eventually passed onto the government's communities and planning secretary Greg Clark[10] who was later replaced by Sajid Javid in July 2016.

In October 2016 Javid ruled to uphold the appeal, paving the way for shale gas production at Preston New Road from 2017.[11] The application for the Roseacre Wood site is still undetermined. Cuadrilla began construction of the Preston fracking site in January 2017. [12]

In November 2016, it was revealed that the government deliberately delayed the release of a damming report on fracking until after the decisions on Cuadrilla's applications were taken, thereby favouring the company's appeal in 2015. The report cites significant risks to human health, house prices, tourism and farming caused by the shale gas industry. [13] The government previously released a heavily redacted version of the report, which excluded the risk assessment. Draft Shale Gas Rural Economy Impacts paper, GOV.uk, 1 July 2015, accessed 19 September 2016 </ref>

Fighting anti-fracking campaigners

Tina Rothery

Cuadrilla has engaged in efforts to disparage and undermine residential groups and green campaigners who oppose fracking, going so far as to launch a series of legal disputes against individuals who have led local protests.

In March 2014, Green party MP Caroline Lucas faced trail in the High Court after being arrested for wilful obstruction of a highway outside the Cuadrilla site in Balcombe. [14] She was found not guilty a month later. [15]

In June 2016, Cuadrilla launched a law suit against prominent anti-fracking campaigner Tina Rothery for £55,000. Alongside the protest group 'the Nanas', Rothery occupied a field near Blackpool beging considered for fracking, which the company had rented from a local farmer. [16] She refused to pay the fee, and was then held in contempt of court. In December 2016 however, she was found not guilty and was spared jail and the fine. [17]

Lobbying and spin

Cuadrilla has since 2011 employed a raft of lobbying, PR and planning consultants to help it try to persuade politicians and local communities to accept its shale gas explorations.

Censure by the Advertising Standards Authority

In 2012 lobbyists and planning consultants PPS produced a brochure for Cuadrilla, titled Summer 2012 Exploring For Natural Gas: Cuadrilla Resources is exploring for natural gas in Lancashire which the Advertising Standards Authority found contained claims that partially breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 and 3.3 (Misleading advertising) and 3.11 (Exaggeration). [18]

This was despite PPS' proclaimed communication strategy that since 2011 'has focused on making Cuadrilla and its operations as transparent as possible so that the government, media and opinion-formers could gain trust in the company’s corporate governance and technology'.

A 'quiet word' with the government

Smith (left), Paterson (centre) and Browne (right)

In March 2014, a Freedom of Information request revealed that the former UK environment secretary Owen Paterson convened an 'urgent high-level' meeting for the Cuadrilla's former chairman Lord Browne with the chair of the Environment Agency (EA) Lord Smith, and other government executives. The meeting was organised on Browne's behalf in order to challenge waste management regulations that applied to the company's operations, after a series of correspondence that included Cuadrilla's chief executive and the former energy minister Michael Fallon.

At Browne's request, Smith offered to fast track the company's consultation for an environmental permit, as well as to intervene in any country council decision that jeopardised Cuadrilla's interests. The meeting also jubilantly discussed the UK's successful lobbying attempts in the EU to defeat attempts to set legally binding environmental regulations for the continent's shale gas industry. [19]

The disclosures, which had been redacted from the meeting minutes released by the EA, showed a gross conflict of interest, especially given Lord Browne was also serving as the government's lead non-executive director. Green campaigners subsequently called into question the integrity of the EA.

'Independent' fracking taskforce funder

In October 2014 Cuadrilla was revealed as one of several industry funders of a new 'independent' Task Force on Shale Gas (UK), headed by former Environment Agency chair (Lord) Chris Smith.

Cuadrilla is also the lead sponsor of the pro-shale business groups North West Energy Task Force and Lancashire for Shale.

Lobbying firms and consultants

2012-2016

  • PPS - the planning lobbyist specialists have retained Cuadrilla as a client since 2011 [21] when it managed the firm's website and produced a brochure for Cuadrilla, titled "Summer 2012 Exploring For Natural Gas Cuadrilla Resources is exploring for natural gas in Lancashire" that the ASA later ruled was partially misleading.

Consultants

  • Paul Kelly - communications consultant and director of PPS Group

Former

  • Nick Sutcliffe - communications consultant and director of PPS Group. Sutcliffe is also politician for Guildford District Council (Conservative Councillor for Ash South & Tongham Ward).

Constituencies including Cuadrilla licences

Cuadrilla was awarded eight shale licences across 18 licence blocks by the Oil and Gas Authority under the 14th licensing round in 2015. The constituencies covering these licensed areas include:

People

  • Francis Egan - Chief executive, appointed in December 2012.
  • Andrew Quarles Van Ufford - Director, appointed in May 2013.
  • Matt Lambert - Cuadrilla's director of government and public affairs since 2013 to present. Has previously worked for Betfair, Microsoft, lobbyists Grayling and was a speechwriter and researcher for Liberal Democrats in the 1980s.[26]
  • Andrew Price
  • Eric Vaughan - CEO, previously chief technology Officer (circa 2012), 'head of well development' 2015
  • Leon Jennings - health, safety and environment director Cuadrilla
  • Ken Lowe - Water management (circa 2012)
  • Huw Clarke - Exploration geologist, joined Cuadrilla in 2009. Senior well site geologist for Cuadrilla’s Bowland shale operations and conducted the geological operations for the Preese Hall 1 shale gas discovery well. Speaker at the March 2014 Shale Gas conference in London. [27]
  • Jacqui Reid, communications and public affairs manager at Cuadrilla Resources Ltd
  • Sam Schofield, Lancashire communications and public affairs manager (previously at PPS

Directors of the Board

Cuadrilla Resource Holdings non-executive directors

  • 25/05/2011 New Company Secretary Mr A.C. Price appointed

Former

Law firms

Peachy & Co LLP was appointed to act for Cuadrilla in the UK from July 2008, as the firm has no in-house legal resource in the UK. This role has involved acting for the oil and gas firm:

  • in December 2011 on Cuadrilla's acquisition of a significant equity participation in a Hungarian O&G project, including successfully fracking a test well. Peachey's website reported that 'Further equity interests will be acquired following further seismic work and the drilling of a further exploratory well during 2012'.
  • in October 2012 with negotiations with the UK Government to recommence its hydraulic fracking operations in the UK.

In June 2013 Peachey & Co acted for the Australian stock exchange quoted company A J Lucas Group Ltd in the sale of part of its interest in the Bowland shale gas exploration licence area to Centrica plc. A J Lucas is a major shareholder in Cuadrilla Resources which is the co-owner on the licence.

In March 2013 The Lawyer magazine reported that former Slaughter and May lawyer Hubert Ashton, now a partner at Peachey, admitted that the past few months of exploratory digging, questions in the House and earthquakes have been “interesting”. [30]

Auditors and bankers

Affiliations

Contact details

  • Website
http://www.cuadrillaresources.com/
  • Address:
Cuadrilla Resources Ltd
Cuadrilla House, Unit 6 Sceptre Court
Sceptre Way, Bamber Bridge
Preston
PR5 6AW

Resources

See: Fracking lobbying firms See: Fracking Spads

Articles

Videos

Public information series:

Notes

  1. ↑ LinkedIn | Cuadrilla Resources, LinkedIn, accessed 25 January 2017.
  2. ↑ Emily Gosden, Losses mount at Cuadrilla as it counts the cost of fracking delays, The Telegraph, 29 October 2016, accessed 7 November 2016.
  3. ↑ Tom Bawden, Exclusive: Fracking company - we caused 50 tremors in Blackpool – but we're not going to stop, Independent, 3 November 2011, accessed 12 October 2016.
  4. ↑ Gas fracking: Ministers approve shale gas extraction, BBC News, 13 December 2012, accessed 13 October 2016.
  5. ↑ Jonathan Brown, Fracking company Cuadrilla pulls out of shale gas site in Lancashire, Independent, 4 October 2013, accessed 13 October 2016.
  6. ↑ Terry McCallister, Cuadrilla announces major fracking expansion in UK, The Guardian, Friday 5 July 2013 18.14 BST
  7. ↑ Fiona Harvey and Adam Vaughan, Cuadrilla announces two new Lancashire fracking sites, The Guardian, 4 February 2014, accessed 23 November 2016.
  8. ↑ Roseacre Wood fracking bid rejected by Lancashire councillors, BBC News, 25 June 2015, accessed 19 September 2016
  9. ↑ Ref here
  10. ↑ Frances Perraudin, Lancashire council's fracking refusal was 'democracy in action', The Guardian, 9 February 2016, accessed 13 September 2016
  11. ↑ Adam Vaughan, Fracking in UK given go-ahead as Lancashire council rejection overturned, The Guardian, 6 October 2016, accessed 6 October 2016.
  12. ↑ Adam Vaughan, Cuadrilla starts work on Lancashire fracking site, The Guardian, 5 January 2017, accessed 26 January 2017.
  13. ↑ Government 'delayed fracking report' until after vote, Greenpeace claims, BBC News, 25 November 2016, accessed 30 November 2016.
  14. ↑ Haroon Siddique, Green MP Caroline Lucas goes on trial over Sussex fracking protests, The Guardian, 24 March 2014, accessed 28 September 2016.
  15. ↑ Caroline Davies, Caroline Lucas cleared of anti-fracking protest charges, The Guadrian, 17 April 2014, accessed 26 January 2017.
  16. ↑ Nazia Parveen, Anti-fracking activist refuses to pay £55,000 legal bill in Cuadrilla dispute, The Guadrian, 24 June 2016, accessed 26 January 2017.
  17. ↑ Frances Perraudin, Anti-fracking activist spared jail after refusing to pay court £55,000, The Guardian, 9 December 2016, accessed 12 December 2016.
  18. ↑ Advertising Standards Authority, ASA Adjudication on Cuadrilla Resources Ltd, Rulings, 24 April 2013, acc 27 March 2014
  19. ↑ Damian Carrington, UK defeats European bid for fracking regulations, The Guardian, 14 January 2014, accessed 26 January 2017.
  20. ↑ Tom Bawden, Cuadrilla PR man admits George Osborne's shale gas revolution won’t cut energy bills, 20 August 2013
  21. ↑ APPC Register Entry for 1 Dec 2011 to 29 Feb 2012
  22. ↑ Register for 1st March 2014 - 31st May 2014
  23. ↑ Lobbyists are unconvincing over the minister for fracking, Socialist Worker, The Troublemaker, 4 Feb 2014, acc 24 June 2014
  24. ↑ Register 1st September 2014 - 30th November 2014 APPC, accessed 23 February 2015
  25. ↑ Register 1st September 2014 - 30th November 2014 APPC, accessed 23 February 2015
  26. ↑ Matt Lambert, LinkedIn, accessed 9 February 2016
  27. ↑ Huw Clarke, Shale UK 2014, accessed 4 September 2014
  28. ↑ CUADRILLA RESOURCES HOLDINGS LIMITED 07147040, Companycheck, acc 27 March 2014
  29. ↑ Tony Carruthers, LinkedIn profile, accessed 9 Feb 2016
  30. ↑ Matt Byrne, Analysis on Bracewell & Giuliani and the shale gas market: The fracking truth, The Lawyer, 4 March 2013
  31. ↑ Register of All-Party Groups (As at 7 June 2013), parliament.co.uk
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