Ed Davey calls on the gas industry to reduce emissions

Energy and climate change secretary Ed Davey has today spoken to the gas industry directly - instructing them to think of new ways that gas can be used in order to reduce emissions.

As he has previously stated, Mr Davey believes that using gas plants instead of coal power is a short-term answer to cutting emissions.

Britain is a huge consumer of gas - in 2011, gas provided 68 per cent of the UK's heating.

"The UK needs secure, affordable and increasingly low-carbon energy supplies. So I’m grateful for today’s opportunity to set out how that requires very significant new investment in the gas sector," he said earlier today.

Mr Davey has called gas the "cleanest-burning of hydrocarbons and arguably the most flexible," which is why he intends for it to be used in many more mediums.

At the moment, gas is mainly just used for heating. However, Mr Davey predicts that it can also be used for electricity as well.

In fact, he believes that the use of gas in this way is so beneficial that it could become the dominant source of electricity.

"I see unabated gas playing a very significant role throughout the 2020s, and, increasingly as back-up or with carbon capture and storage, through the 2030s and 2040s," he said.

Although this could be beneficial in the short term, many green groups may be angry at the declaration as it could result in long term environmental problems.

Some may also be annoyed at the fact that Ed Davey is not attempting to find new ways to reduce emissions, instead he is looking at simply using gas more frequently.

Specifically, a lot of individuals had hoped that shale gas could be a huge factor in dragging Britain out of the economic downturn.

Shale gas is a natural gas formed from being trapped within shale formations and has been very popular and successful in America.

"I know that some British commentators are... excitedly touting shale gas as a silver bullet to bring Britain to a new age of cheap energy…

"I'm all in favour of exploiting new resources," he said, claiming that he is eager to "reduce energy prices to consumers and businesses alike".

However, Mr Davey says that he makes "no apology" for waiting to see if the fuel source is reliable and environmentally friendly before diving head first into using the gas solely.