In the final part of the UK government’s14^th licensing round, Ineos has been awarded 21 new shale gas licenses. With the addition of 700,000 acres to its existing 300,000, the Swiss-based group now controls nearly 1 million acres of potential shale gas reserves, making it one of the UK’s biggest players.

Most of the new licenses – 93 in total – awarded by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) are in the old mining heartlands of the northwest England, North Yorkshire and the East Midlands, which Ineos says have a “heritage of energy and feedstock production.”

Exploration areas in England and Wales include Runcorn, near Ineos’ large manufacturing site. In North Yorkshire the fields are close to Ineos plants in Hull and Newton Aycliffe. No licenses were awarded in Scotland, which has a moratorium on fracking until spring 2017 as the devolved government ponders the potential environmental impacts of unconventional gas extraction.

All of the licenses are subject to planning permission. To help persuade local communities and property owners to open their land for exploration and eventually fracking, Ineos is offering to share 6% of revenues – with 4% going to homeowners and landowners directly above wells and 2% to the wider communities.

Ineos chairman Jim Ratcliffe said the UK government “has demonstrated it is determined to move forward with this exciting new industry. This is the start of a shale gas revolution that will transform manufacturing in the UK.” He added that “Ineos has the skills to safely extract the gas.”

Given the company’s “knowledge and experience in running complex petrochemical facilities, coupled with its world class sub-surface expertise,” Gary Haywood, CEO of Ineos Shale, said that being awarded so many licenses “supports our belief that we are the right company to extract shale gas in the UK. The government sees us as a safe pair of hands.”

In contrast to many other companies interested in shale gas exploitation, Ineos pointed out that it can use the gas both as a feedstock and a power source, thus underpinning the competiveness of its UK manufacturing sites for years to come. Moreover, the company said, these new “shale economics” could bolster the wider UK manufacturing sector as they have done in the US.