Government blocks Lancs gas storage plan

HALITE Energy, the US firm proposing to convert salt fields at Preesall in Lancashire into underground gas storage chambers, says it is “extremely disappointed” that the Government has knocked-back its plans.

Halite claimed its investment would have created thousands of jobs for the area during the building of 19 huge caverns in the salt strata beneath Preesall, which would have stored 900 million cubic metres of natural gas.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change said the plan had been rejected because of a failure to provide comprehensive geological data.

A DECC spokesman said: “Each application for gas storage must be considered on its merits. After carefully weighing up the evidence for a storage site at Preesall in Lancashire, DECC has taken the decision to refuse the application.

“The refusal is due to a specific issue – the application failed to demonstrate the suitability of the site’s geology for salt cavern storage.

“This is just one project. The UK has two gas storage sites under construction that will together add 13%  to the UK’s storage capacity and there are more with planning permission.”

Keith Budinger, chief executive of Halite, said: “Halite and its team of consultants have worked strenuously over the past three years, during which our application has been scrutinised through a rigorous planning process.

“We will now need time to examine the reasons behind the turn down carefully before deciding on our next steps.

“I would like to thank all those organisations that we have worked with during this process: the Planning Inspectorate, statutory consultees and the local community.”