A Dutch court has received 25 appeals against the government’s decision to cap production at the Groningen gas field to an annual figure of 24 billion cubic metres from protesters who do not think it goes far enough.
A number of groups in the region asked for a steeper reduction to prevent earthquakes, which have damaged thousands of structures in the northern province.
Groningen used to supply 10% of demand in the European Union.
But it has halved in the past two years after the Dutch Safety Board said the government was failing to protect citizens from earthquakes triggered by gas exploitation.
The Groningen gas field is operated by NAM, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil.
The Council of State said among those bringing complaints were 19 local authorities as well as environmental groups and individuals.
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