THABO MOKONE | 23 August, 2013 00:21

.

The government has unequivocally stated that it is going ahead with the exploration of shale gas in the Karoo, insisting that fracking could be a significant "game-changer in the energy sector".

Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies yesterday told the media in Cape Town that last week's cabinet lekgotla resolved that the exploration of shale gas in the Karoo in the Western Cape should commence before next year's general elections.

This is despite objections from lobby groups and environmentalists who have warned that the exploration of shale gas - commonly referred to as fracking - would ruin the entire Karoo region.

Davies said shale gas exploration was crucial to solving the country's energy problem and it would stimulate economic growth.

"A potential game-changer is shale gas. My little knowledge of this is that Mossgas has a resource of one trillion cubic metres of gas. The gas fields of northern Mozambique, which have just opened, have got about a hundred trillion cubic metres of gas.

"The shale gas deposit estimates suggest that it is multiples of the Mozambique level. If that is the case, this could be a very significant game-changer in terms of energy," he said.

Davies said the decision formed part of a multi-pronged strategy to stimulate investment and job creation. He said the government would consider the concerns raised by the anti-fracking lobby groups by putting measures in place to protect the environment.

"We are not going to do this in any kind of irresponsible way," he said.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe told the National Assembly on Wednesday that scientists had advised the government to allow fracking for the benefit of the economy.