“The Republican party will seek to remove what it claims are shackles on America’s energy revolution just as low oil prices threaten the economic viability of some US shale developments,” the Financial Times reports.  

“Since Republicans won control of Congress, attention has focused on their support for the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada and opposition to what they call the president’s “war on coal”, but a push to boost US shale energy will be at the heart of their agenda.”  

“Republicans and industry officials say oil and gas is being held back by outdated laws and mindsets rooted in the 1970s, when the Arab oil embargo and energy shortages created an imperative to protect domestic resources.”