Alkane

Seven Star Natural Gas has submitted a revised planning application to Staffordshire County Council to re-open a borehole at Three Nooks farm, near Biddulph Moor. The energy firm had received permission in July 2011 to work on site for seven weeks to establish whether there is enough gas to make extraction commercially viable, but this now needs to be amended to allow for the repair of a small gas leak.

 

The minor leak is originating from the well drilled by Shell in 1982. Although the severity of the gas leak is deemed to be minor and the associated risk low, particularly because the borehole is on open farmland and hence well ventilated, work needs to be undertaken as soon as is realistically practical to resolve it. The only solution available to stop the leak completely, in compliance with regulatory guidelines, is to drill out all of the existing cement plug from the well and re-plug and abandon it from top to bottom, using modern techniques which will prohibit future gas leaks.

 

As gas is present in the well, it is deemed a ‘live well’ and it is considered unsafe to drill for only half of the day (permission which was granted in the initial planning application) and leave the site standing for the remaining 12 hours. The revised planning application is for necessary 24 hour / continuous drilling and it is anticipated that the drilling work will take up to 30 days. 

 

The noise from the drilling will be minimal, with the estimated level not exceeding 45 decibels (to put into context, 40 decibels is the equivalent of whispering and 50 decibels, the equivalent of normal conversation). In addition, the operations on site will be scheduled to minimise potential for night-time disturbance as far as is possible. Seven Star Natural Gas will also restrict vehicular access to day time hours in order to minimise night-time noise at the operation.

 

 

 

Seven Star Natural Gas Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alkane Energy plc.

Neil O’Brien, Chief Executive at Alkane commented: “Although it is only believed to be a minor leak from this well, we are committed to ensuring a safe resolution to the problem as quickly and safely as possible. The well was drilled by Shell in the early 1980s and has been untouched since 1984. We have worked with independent consultants to ensure that the revised planning application that we’ve put to Staffordshire County Council offers the best way forward. We are doing all we can to minimise disruption to local residents over the 30 day drilling period and ensure that they can carry on with their daily lives uninterrupted.”