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Fracking tech patents reach a record high
THE NUMBER of patents filed worldwide for fracking technology reached a record high in 2013, according to new Thomson Reuters data released today.
Last year 706 applications were filed, up 28 per cent from 2012, for patents relating to the hydraulic fracturing – or fracking – technique, which is used to extract shale gas from rock formations. Most applications came from firms in the US, which has undergone an energy revolution in recent years after discovering the lucrative resource.
A number of firms have licences to frack in the UK, after geological surveys indicated shale gas reserves.