Gas storage firm's year of preparations for Fylde coast caverns

A year ago Halite Energy was given permission by the Government to go ahead with the controversial plan despite massive local opposition.

Now the company has said it is progressing with preparation work and will be keeping the residents fully informed.

It aims to carve out 19 salt caverns near Preesall and store up to 900 million cubic metres of gas to add 20 per cent to the national storage capacity .

But residents say the views of the people are constantly being ignored and little new information about the scheme has been released.

Halite said since the Department of Energy and Climate Change granted consent 12 months ago, the company had been completing preparations including detailed design work, negotiating land deals, acquiring licences and liaising with National Grid.

Keith Budinger, chief executive of Halite Energy said: “Since Halite received consent for the Preesall underground gas storage project considerable work has been undertaken by our team to pave the way for the start of construction.

“Good progress has been made and we wanted to take this opportunity to update the community on the project and also to reassure local people that Halite continues to extensively monitor and maintain the legacy brine field at Preesall.

“We will update the local community on likely timescales for start on site and construction, following the completion of the detailed technical and legal preparatory work that is required for a project of such national significance.

“We want to reiterate our commitment to ensuring that the project is built safely, in line with Health and Safety Executive and Environment agency requirements.”

Claire Rimmer from protest group Rise up Against Gas Storage said: “The local community remains overwhelmingly opposed to this development by Halite.

“Local people know the area best and they do not believe it is safe to store gas in Preesall within half a mile of homes, close to schools, with Preesall’s history of salt mining and subsidence and the potential of fracking so close by.

“There has been no information at all for the local community from Halite or the government about how the development will progress since the decision was taken.

“Construction will impact the community a great deal. Our roads are full of holes now before we have up to 62 extra lorries a day up and down country lanes. Local people have seen the disruption that building housing in Hambleton has caused never mind a major infrastructure project like this. Despite the rhetoric of local communities having more say, our voices are ignored.

“We hope that the local community can be actively involved in understanding and monitoring any next steps.”