Energy firm seeks California Quarry drilling extension

The well, like this one, is planned to be built on the three-acre site near Durlston Castle

A firm that plans to drill for oil and gas on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset is seeking an extension to its drilling licence.

InfraStrata has planning permission to drill onshore at California Quarry near Swanage to a well offshore 2,000 metres (6,600ft) beneath the seabed.

Its licence states an exploration well must be drilled by February 2016.

The firm said the extension was needed as it had been unable to complete its analysis on the site.

It was given planning permission by Dorset County Council for the exploratory drilling in December 2013.

The energy company plans to use conventional drilling methods, not hydraulic fracturing - otherwise known as fracking - on the site near Durlston Castle.

Campaigners claim oil or gas extraction would "destroy" the landscape, as rigs would be close to a historical site and conservation area.

If no commercial oil or gas is found, the well will be plugged and abandoned and the well site restored to its original state.