Onshore petroleum licensing policy

This consultation sets out four policy options with a preferred option to introduce a moratorium and eventual legislative ban on all forms of onshore petroleum exploration and production in Northern Ireland. This position has been reached following a review of onshore petroleum licensing policy by the Department for the Economy.

The consultation document provides details on the background to this issue, the rationale for the preferred option and seeks your views on the way forward. On this page you can access independent research on the impacts of petroleum exploration and production in Northern Ireland, research on the risks of induced seismicity from high volume hydraulic fracturing of shales in Northern Ireland and the relevant impact assessments for the proposed future policy.