Poland has enough shale gas reserves to sustain itself for 300 years based on the country’s current energy consumption levels, according to a report released on April 6 by the Energy Information Administration.

The EIA estimated that Poland’s total shale reserves amount to approximately 5.3 trillion cubic feet. This translates to the largest amount of shale gas housed in any country across Europe. Previously, experts estimated that Poland contained between 150 billion and 3 trillion cubic meters.

Currently numerous operators, such as FX Energy and Aurelian Oil & Gas, are already drilling in the Baltic Basin. However it will take at least a year to determine if shale gas production is economically possible, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.

Rado Sikorski, Poland's foreign minister, noted that utilization of European shale gas "may change its energy paradigm."