This from the SMH. I think AWE are most likely when a shale...

This from the SMH. I think AWE are most likely when a shale resource is proven up.


BHP Billiton has flagged plans to increase its exposure to shale gas, saying the arrival of big companies will improve the controversial sector's environmental credentials.

BHP has twice ventured into the US shale scene this year, buying $US4.75 billion worth of assets from Chesapeake Energy before spending $US15.1 billion last month to acquire Petrohawk Energy.

Production of shale gas requires underground rock to be fractured using a high-pressure mix of chemicals and fluids - a process that has raised concerns among environmentalists.

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Chief executive Marius Kloppers came to the defence of the shale industry yesterday, saying the sector's reputation had been created by small players who were fast being elbowed out by bigger, more responsible companies like BHP.

''The shale industry was developed by a set of smaller players and there was historically not a very high level of disclosure of what fracking fluids go in the reservoirs, how it is done, and so on,'' he said.

Mr Kloppers said an era of ''greater transparency'' was about to emerge with new laws and improved self-regulation.

''We feel very comfortable with the exposure we have taken on, particularly against the backdrop where the shale industry is now more and more dominated by the big players that are also the oil and gas majors and all of them are pushing for more disclosure,'' he said.

Asked whether BHP Billiton wanted to expand its shale operations into Australia, Mr Kloppers did not foreshadow an immediate move, but hinted it was likely