British shale natural gas pioneer Cuadrilla Resources said it was awarded two new licenses to explore the reserve potential in Yorkshire.

Cuadrilla secured licenses to explore around 750 square miles of combined land in Yorkshire. During the next year, the company said most of the activity would consist of "desktop studies" that will give the company a better idea of the geology and reserve potential.

"While we continue to progress our shale gas exploration work in Lancashire, we welcome the potential for exploration in Yorkshire along with the associated benefits of new jobs and economic growth we believe it will bring," Cuadrilla Chief Executive Officer Francis Egan said in a statement.

The British Geological Survey started a baseline environmental survey in Yorkshire last week. Third Energy U.K. Gas Ltd. already submitted an application to use hydraulic fracturing at one well site there.

Shale gas is in its infancy in the country, though the government recently moved to fast-track the permit process after saying local councils were dragging their feet. Caudrilla aims to appeal a local council decision against its plans in Lancashire, a center of the emerging gas sector.

Egan said his company was on the ground vetting questions from the community in Yorkshire to address any concerns about future operations.

"We have a responsibility to ensure people understand the facts and are not misled by harmful scaremongering," he said. "Onshore exploration and fracking can and will be done safely, securely and in an environmentally responsible way."

British advocacy group Friends of the Earth said hydraulic fracturing, known also as fracking, poses "unacceptable risks" to public health and the environment.

"The government is allowing companies to drill right through aquifers that are used to supply household drinking water," FOE campaigner Andrew Pendleton said in a statement.

The British government said shale investments could reach more than $50 billion and support around 64,000 jobs. Natural gas imports without shale, meanwhile, are expected to account for 76 percent of total demand by 2030.