New gas discovery in West Lindsey sparks debate over energy future

A campaigner against Lincolnshire solar farms has said that tapping a giant gas field discovered in the area would be preferable.

The new discovery – thought to have enough gas to power the UK for a decade – is located below West Lindsey, the same area where thousands of acres of solar farms have recently been approved.

Fracking is under a temporary ban in the UK, with the government saying it wants to stop it permanently.

However, Simon Skelton, who has been involved in a campaign against Lincolnshire solar farms as part of the 7,000 Acres group, said the choice would be a “no-brainer”.

“The government would rather import gas and oil from the other side of the world than extract the resources on our doorstep,” he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

“I would personally prefer to use our home-grown fuel that’s right there.

“I would rather have a nodding donkey oil well in a single field than every field covered in solar panels. It’s a no-brainer.

“Nothing has the same footprint as solar power. Just in this region, we will have an area the size of the city of Lincoln covered with panels.

“Unfortunately, fracking is a non-starter under this government.

“We will need fossil fuels for the foreseeable future—there’s no getting around that. Solar is much more unreliable than oil or gas.”

Egdon, which discovered the gas, claims the field could be worth up to £110bn and would create thousands of jobs if tapped.

However, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero confirmed this week that it will remain focused on renewable energy rather than fossil fuels.

A spokesperson said: “We intend to ban fracking for good and make Britain a clean energy superpower to protect current and future generations.

“The biggest risk to our energy security is staying dependent on fossil fuel markets, and only by sprinting to clean power by 2030 can the UK take back control of its energy and protect both family and national finances from price spikes.

“Through our Plan for Change, we will reignite our industrial heartlands as we seize the opportunities of the clean energy transition and will continue to drive investment for businesses and communities in the UK.”