The Planning Inspectorate has rejected an appeal for an opencast coal mine at Nant Llesg, in Caerphilly, South Wales.

Nant Llesg is an area of area of open land at the top of the Rhymney Valley. If plans to build an opencast mine at Nant Llesg had gone ahead, six million tonnes of coal could have been mined over 14 years.

Plans for the opencast mine were rejected by Caerphilly County Borough Council in 2015. The developer lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate following the Caerphilly Council’s decision to reject the mine. The appeal has now been closed by the Inspectorate. The news comes ahead of next month’s appeal against the refusal of planning permission for the Druridge Bay opencast mine in Northumberland, which will be heard in the High Court.

Opinion: The ‘coal’ truth is we need a gas resurgence

Interview: Felix Lerch, UK chair, Uniper: The UK’s power challenges “have to be dealt with quickly, because they are coming quickly”

2025 deadline: Can our gas plants deliver the capacity and flexibility we need?

Not a subscriber? To see if you qualify for our next FREE TRIAL send your name, job title, and telephone number to [email protected]