Ineos plans £640m fracking investment

Company is applying for additional licences in Scotland and the north of England

Chemicals firm Ineos has announced plans to invest £640 million in shale gas exploration and appraisal.

The company already has two licences near its plant at Grangemouth in Scotland, but is applying for more in Scotland and the north of England.

Chairman Jim Ratcliffe said: "I believe shale gas could revolutionise UK manufacturing and I know Ineos has the resources to make it happen, the skills to extract the gas safely and the vision to realise that everyone must share in the rewards."

The two licences Ineos already have comprise more than 120,000 acres, while the company is also investing £400 million on a project to bring US shale gas to Grangemouth.

Ineos has announced it will give local communities 6% of the revenues from any shale gas it produces, worth an estimated £375 million.

Environmental groups have attacked the announcement.

Simon Clydesdale, energy campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: "Investment is essential to transform our energy system, but not giant speculative bets on unproven and risky resources. Ineos have jumped on a spin-powered bandwagon which is going nowhere.

"Independent academics recently called out government ministers over the ludicrous levels of hype around shale gas, saying 'shale gas has been completely oversold'. It seems thatIneos have based their business plan on breathless PR brochures rather than scientific reports.''