An application for the installation of a new oil storage tank was submitted by Humbly Grove Energy Limited to Hampshire County Council and Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council on November 18 last year.
The proposal seeks to extend the life of operations at the Humbly Grove Oilfield plant in Lasham from September 30 2025 to September 30 2055, or to the end of the life of the oil field, whichever is sooner, and for the erection of an additional oil storage tank.
The oil storage tank would measure 6.1m in height and 7.5m in diameter, which is larger than the size of an average two storey house.
READ MORE: Major development of 745 new homes in Basingstoke brings £12m investment
Humbly Grove Oilfield (Image: Humbly Grove Energy Limited)
It is proposed to have a capacity of 1,500 barrels.
A planning statement, prepared by Axis on behalf of Humbly Grove Energy, states that “natural gas and oil have been produced at the Humbly Oil Field and Gas Storage Facility since the discovery of mineral reserve in the early 1980s.
“By utilising a naturally formed reservoir and additional surface facilities, the applicant provides gas storage services that contribute to balancing gas supply and demand within the national gas transmission (NTS).
“Since 1980 the field has also produced in excess of 6 million barrels of oil, and its field development plan forecasts that it could produce an additional circa 1.5 million barrels.
“Based on an annual average extraction rate of circa 52,000 barrels, the reservoir would be exhausted by 2055.”
In 2005 the depleted reservoir gas cap was developed, and infrastructure installed to facilitate oil extraction and in parallel provide one of the largest Gas Storage Facilities in the UK.
The Humbly Grove Oil Field was discovered in 1980 by Carless Limited, and production began in 1984. At that time three reservoirs were discovered and originally drilled (Hesters Copse Reservoir; Herriard Reservoir; and Humbly Grove Reservoir) Humbly Grove Reservoir is the only active remaining reservoir, at around 3,500 to 4,000 feet below sea level, with the other two having been abandoned.
Readers can find the planning application by visiting the Hampshire County Council planning portal and searching HCC/2024/0536.