"It will be a very fluffy, peaceful, family-oriented demonstration - no one will be trespassing on the forecourt," he added.

The Stop Esso Day will involve leading environmental groups like Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, political parties such as the Green party and Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru and Transport 2000.

This is the latest action in a co-ordinated campaign in the UK that has involved high profile celebrities like Bianca Jagger and pop star Annnie Lennox.

Esso's parent company U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil has come under fire from environmental groups and politicians across the world for opposing the Kyoto Protocol on global climate change. They allege that intense lobbying by powerful firms like Exxon contributed to the United States pulling out of the deal last year.

Exxon denies it is unconcerned by gobal warming and says that it is tackling the issue on a number of other fronts.

It says that it is working with the car industry to improve fuel efficiency in engines; is researching ways to lower costs and emissions across all its operations, and investing in producing cleaner fuels.

Between 1973 and 1998 the company said it has reduced energy use at its refineries and chemical plants by 37 percent, saving more than the UK's entire CO2 emisssions in 1998.