'Small-scale hydraulic fracking' plan to be lodged

An oil and gas firm has said it is preparing to submit a formal planning application to drill for gas near the North York Moors National Park.

Europa Oil & Gas has told residents in Burniston near Scarborough it will make the application to North Yorkshire Council for its "proppant squeeze" project, which would including a 30m (98ft) drilling rig.

The company had aimed to submit its plans last year, but has faced opposition from residents and politicians concerned about the environmental impact.

Chief executive William Holland said that if successful, the project would bring economic and job benefits and would "lower emissions by developing our domestic gas".

The firm has previously said that a "slurry" will be injected into the well to fracture surrounding rocks, allowing more gas to be recovered.

The technique, which has been described as "small-scale fracking", has been accused by some of being a loophole in the UK's moratorium on the controversial fossil fuel extraction process.

However, proppant squeeze procedures have been regularly used in the UK for a number of years and industry experts consider the technique low-volume, unlike the process formally termed 'hydraulic fracturing'.

The initial scheme would test whether gas could be extracted on a commercially viable basis.

The project could take up to 17 weeks and see more than 1,000 HGV movements, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

If the company deemed the gas reserves financially viable, it could then seek to drill up to five wells to be extracted over 10 years or more subject to planning approval.

However, concerns have been raised about the environmental impacts, as well as the impact on roads due to HGVs moving materials, and house prices.

A drop-in information session in Burniston, which was organised by the company last September, was attended by more than 100 people opposed to the plans.

In a recent leaflet sent to residents, Europa said it had "received feedback that a combination of the weather and the protesters may have dissuaded some locals from attending the [drop-in session]".

It said it wanted to offer residents the chance to ask questions about the potential gas field development and people could ask for "a meeting, either online or at your home address".

Clarification 6 February 2025: This report has been amended to include greater context around the drilling process and industry terminology.

Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.