Deep underground coal gasification will allow the exploitation of otherwise “stranded” deep underground coal reserves – and UK company Cluff Natural Resources is jumping to the forefront of the untapped opportunities.

However, Cluff’s latest venture – an application for a licence to explore underground coal fields in the heart of Warwickshire – is being met with fierce opposition.

The company has put in a bid with the Coal Authority, the government coal management agency, to explore the land for UCG potential.

If granted it would be the company’s sixth UCG licence but the first one to be offered inland rather than offshore.

A campaign group called No UCG Warwickshire has been established to oppose the plans.

In a petition due to be lodged with Warwickshire County Council, the group says unconventional gas development will damage the environment and is “unacceptable”

“Increased use of fossil fuels should not be pursued as an energy strategy for the future,” it said.

“We wish to preserve our way of life, our beautiful countryside and we wish our legacy to our children and grandchildren to be a clean, unspoilt future not an industrialised toxic wasteland.”

The group is calling for the county to ban all unconventional gas, coal and oil exploration and exploitation.

No UCG Warwickshire is planning to hold a meeting in Rugby on September 5 to discuss Cluff’s plans.