The United States is enjoying an energy bonanza thanks to shale gas, making it a magnet for industry, reducing import dependence and challenging Europe as it battles to dig itself out of recession, energy officials say.
Ukraine is said to have Europe's third-largest shale gas reserves at 42 trillion cubic feet (1.2 trillion cubic meters), according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Its reserves are dwarfed by those of France however, estimated to be Europe's largest at 180 trillion cubic feet.
France has banned the procedure, known as fracking which is used to extract shale gas and which involves pumping vast quantities of water and chemicals at high pressure through drill holes to prop open shale rocks.
A recent confidential study by the German intelligence agency (BND) suggested the United States could turn from being the world's greatest energy importer into an oil and gas exporter by 2020, reducing its dependence on the Middle East and thereby giving it much more freedom in policy making.
China by contrast would become much more dependent on Middle East oil to fuel its rapid expansion.
Illustrating just how rapidly the shale revolution has taken hold, shale gas accounted for just 1 percent of gas production in 2005, whereas today it is a third, and by 2040 it will be 50 percent, U.S. special envoy Pascual said.
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