The proposed storage facility is designed to store 500 million cubic metres of natural gas in seven caverns to be created at a depth of 1500mt within a Permian salt sequence.
The site is ideally located close to existing gas infrastructure and in what the company believes is the thickest development of salt in Northern Ireland at Ballylumford on Islandmagee, County Antrim.
The company said that the facility will make a significant contribution to the security of energy supplies and is designed to supply up to 5% of UK and Ireland demand on a peak day. In the event of a supply disruption from Scotland, the facility could meet more than 60 days of peak demand within Northern Ireland.
The project is expected to create new jobs, and reduce the operational costs and future investment requirements of the existing gas transportation infrastructure. The applications are being submitted by Islandmagee Storage, which is 65% owned by the company.
Andrew Hindle, CEO of Infrastrata, said: “The planning application today is a major milestone on the road to making this very important infrastructure development a reality. We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with the industry, government, community and regulator during the development of the project.
“This proximity to infrastructure reduces both the environmental impact of the facility and its cost of construction. The estimated cost of GBP250m, including cushion gas, is very competitive when compared to other proposed storage facilities in the UK on a storage volume basis especially given the flexibility of storage service it could offer.”
