UK Oil & Gas plc said it had submitted an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate against Surrey County Council (SCC)’s decision to refuse permission for the Loxley gas appraisal.
The onshore hydrocarbon company added that it expected a public inquiry to be held during the autumn and a decision by the end of 2021.
UKOG said: “Leading Counsel continues to advise that there are strong grounds to expect a positive appeal outcome, as SCC’s cited grounds for refusal are in direct conflict with the advice of its professional Planning and Highway officers and their respective recommendations for approval.”
Chief executive Stephen Sanderson said that the company’s case was strong and he was confident of a positive outcome.
“We take comfort that the future of Loxley as a low-impact hydrogen feedstock project will now be decided by a professional planning inspector, who must consider hard facts, not fiction, and arrive at a decision that is wholly consistent with the objective evidence presented.”
UKOG owns 100% of Loxley which it estimates to be one of the largest gas accumulations discovered and flow tested in the UK onshore.
It also believes that if successful the site could provide energy for some 200,000 homes per year.
The company added it foresaw Loxley playing a role in helping achieve net zero targets through the supply of gas feedstock for reformation into clean burning hydrogen, an energy source with an 85% reduction in related carbon emissions versus natural gas.
A UKOG statement read: “Loxley’s and other UK domestic gas also provide a much lower carbon-footprint hydrogen feedstock option than imports, having approximately a quarter of the carbon emissions of imported liquefied natural gas.”
UKOG’s wholly owned subsidiary, UKOG (234) Ltd, holds 100% interest in PEDL-234 which includes land on both sides of the Surrey and West Sussex county boundary.
UK Oil & Gas plc is focused on hydrocarbon assets in the Weald Basin and its main asset is the Horse Hill oil site also known as the ‘Gatwick Gusher’.