The Infrastructure Act 2015

After months of uncertainty as to whether it would get side-lined due to the May General Election, the Infrastructure Act has now come into force. It will have huge implications for petroleum extraction in general and, specifically, the future of unconventional gas extraction or hydraulic fracturing ('fracking').

Crucially this Act closes the door on the gathering momentum of trespass cases being used tactically to attempt to frustrate hydraulic fracturing initiatives.

Although petroleum in a landowner's land belongs to the Crown, it was previously (confirmed by the case of Bocardo S.A. v. Star Energy [2010]) a trespass to drill underneath a landowner's land without consent to access such deposits (even hundreds of metres below surface level). This in turn could mean potentially higher costs and long delays to any extraction project.