The North East Storage project is initially a geological investigation, mainly taking place on agricultural land, in the Larne Borough Council area. These investigations will be carried out by a consortium which is pooling its expertise. The consortium comprises BGE (Northern Ireland), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bord Gáis and Storengy, a company of GDF SUEZ.

The aim of this project is to determine if there are subterranean salt layers present, which could potentially be used for underground natural gas storage.

The first stage of the investigation, a seismic study, was completed in January 2010 and the results have been extensively analysed over several months. The results have indicated that suitable subterranean salt layers are present approximately 1500m (one mile) below the surface.

The current stage in determining the feasibility of underground natural gas storage is to carry out a 'test drill', also known as an 'exploration well' in a localised area. The area chosen crosses two landowners' properties and consent has been given by these landowners. For the duration of the test drill, North East Storage (NES) has taken temporary charge of the land.

Civil works were carried out at the site to prepare the area for the exploration well. A smaller preliminary drill will take place, drilling through the basalt rock layer, before the main drill, which will drill down up to 1600m (approximately one mile). This will be carried out in the spring of 2012.

A traffic management plan is in place for the duration of the civil works and subsequent test drill. As per the plan, lorries will only travel on the main roads, avoiding minor routes and built-up areas, where possible.

This website aims to inform local stakeholders and the general public of the consortium's plan in the area and keep them up to date with the progress of the project.