The latest legal challenge against testing an exploratory oil well at Balcombe in West Sussex will be heard in January 2025.

In May 2024, Balcombe residents heard they had permission to take their case to the Court of Appeal.

The case will be considered by three judges on 28 and 29 January 2025.

The announcement is the latest stage in a campaign against oil exploration in Balcombe lasting more than a decade.

In 2013, daily protests to drilling by Cuadrilla in the village made national headlines.

The current operator, Angus Energy, has tried since 2020 to get permission to test the commercial viability of the well.

West Sussex County Council unanimously refused planning permission in 2021. It said the well test was not in the public interest and would have minimal benefit to the economy.

Angus Energy successfully appealed against the decision in 2023 when a government-appointed inspector overturned the council’s decision.

Frack Free Balcombe Residents’ Association (FFBRA) challenged the inspector’s grant of planning permission at the High Court but lost its case in October 2023.

At the Court of Appeal, FFBRA will contest the ruling of the High Court judge, Mrs Nathalie Lieven. It will argue that an oilfield should not be developed in the High Weald area of outstanding natural beauty.

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