A CONTROVERSIAL drilling technique which has been blamed for causing earthquakes could help create 35,000 jobs in Britain and provide enough energy to power much of the country's needs for decades, a new report has claimed.

A study by the Institute of Directors (IoD) in London says developing an industry to exploit shale gas reserves both on and off shore could provide "massive benefits to the UK".

Shale gas is mostly extracted by fracking, a technique in which water is pumped at high pressure into rock to create fractures that allow gas to be captured. It has been linked to earth tremors.

Unexploited deposits of shale gas exist on the Moray Firth and the Firth of Forth, while drilling company Dart energy has been working to extract methane gas from coal beds at Canonbie, Dumfries and Galloway, although this is being done without using fracking.

The IoD survey says at a conservative estimate, the potential value of shale gas production in the UK would offset the decline in North Sea oil and gas industries.

The report claims shale gas could provide enough onshore supply to meet 10% of the UK's gas demand for the next 103 years, while also bringing in environmental benefits by removing the need for coal-burning electricity plants.

Dan Lewis, who is the energy policy adviser at the IoD and a co-author of the report, commented: "Shale isn't the answer to all our problems, but it would be a really beneficial part of the energy mix – creating jobs, driving decarbonisation and helping to prevent constant rises in energy prices.

"Fracking has been controversial, but the reality is that with proper regulation it is no more risky than any kind of hydrocarbon extraction – if we overplay the risks, we would miss out on the very real benefits."

Critics say fracking could have dangerous side-effects.

Dr Richard Dixon, director of WWF Scotland, said: "We have had some scare stories on what happens when you use fracking to extract gas and it is known to cause earthquakes, so we should be thinking very carefully before going down this route."

A Scottish Government spokesman said: "While we recognise the future potential there is for unconventional gas in Scotland, shale gases and coal-bed methane are not included in our energy plans or in our national energy modelling."