The UK lifted its ban on fracking to pursue energy independence as power bills soar, but experts say it's unlikely to help the energy crisis this winter

The UK hopes to cut its dependence on energy imports by lifting its ban on frack.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the UK's Business and Energy Secretary, said in a statement that "Strengthening our energy security is an absolute priority."

The UK is in a cost-of-living crisis, with annual energy bills expected to increase by 80% from October, according to the country's energy regulators.

The UK wants to become a net energy exporter by the year 2040. It now imports all main fuel types.

Due to concerns about earth tremors from the process of fracturing rocks with water and chemicals at high pressure in order to extract gas, the UK temporarily banned the practice of frack in 2019. The process of fracking is controversial because of its impact on the environment and the possibility of earthquakes. In a report on Thursday, the British Geological Survey said it was difficult to predict the occurrence of large earthquakes.

Some experts question the impact of the lifting of the ban on consumers and the size of their energy bills.

According to a report from the London School of Economics, it's not true that the price of gas produced at home would be much lower than international prices.

It takes a long time to make an impact.

If thousands of successful wells were to be drilled at hundreds of sites across northern England, the impact on UK supply would be significant.