Drilling at the Horse Hill development not far from Gatwick airport has been given the go-ahead by the Environment Agency but the six AIM companies backing the project still need long-awaited council planning approval, which could be decided next month.
Operator Horse Hill Developments (HHDL) has been granted permission by the agency to carry out extended flow tests at the Horse Hill-1 well in the Weald Basin, store any produced oil, drill and test both a side-track from the existing HH-1 well and a new Horse Hill-2 borehole.
HHDL, which owns 65% owner of the Horse Hill licenses PEDL 137 and PEDL 246, is 32.435%-owned by UK Oil & Gas Investments, with Regency Mines owning 3.1%, Solo Oil PLC (LON:SOLO) 10%, Primorus Investments 10%, Alba Mineral Resources 15% and Gunsynd 2.0%.
A planning application submitted by HHDL last October to Surrey County Council for long-term production testing and further appraisal drilling is now scheduled to be determined at the council’s next planning committee meeting, on 18 October.