Shale seen as aid to British economy

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LONDON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- Oil and natural gas from onshore shale deposits in the United Kingdom may offset declines expected from the North Sea, a report said.

Accounting company PricewaterhouseCoopers said shale oil could add as much as 3.3 percent to the U.K. gross domestic product by 2035.

The report said shale oil developments may have a "major impact" on the global economy in general.

These effects are not as great now as in the 1970s when oil price hikes had severe negative impacts on major oil-importing economies, helping to push the U.K. and many other countries into prolonged periods of 'stagflation', but are nevertheless very significant," the report reads.

A report from The Daily Telegraph newspaper in January said that expected declines from North Sea oil was hurting the British economy.

The British Department of Energy and Climate Change suggested last year that any new hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, procedures should include small-scale operations followed by a monitoring stage to ensure safe development.

Cuadrilla Resources last year voluntarily halted shale gas extraction in northwestern England because of small tremors reported near its operations.