A decade-long effort by James Howells, a 39-year-old IT specialist from Newport, to retrieve a discarded hard drive holding an estimated £600m in bitcoin has hit a roadblock, as a judge ruled against his legal challenge to search a landfill for the device.

The dispute stems from a 2013 incident when Howells accidentally threw away the hard drive containing his bitcoin wallet during an office clean-up. The device, which he claims could soon hold a value of up to £1bn, was mistakenly discarded in a rubbish bag that ended up in a council-managed landfill.

For years, Howells has appealed to Newport City Council to allow him access to the site, even offering a share of the recovered funds. However, the council has consistently refused, citing environmental concerns and ownership rights over items discarded at the landfill.

In an attempt to push forward, Howells launched a legal case to compel the council to grant him permission for a targeted excavation of the landfill. His legal team argued the search would be a “precise excavation” of a specific area using expert equipment.

On Thursday, Judge Keyser KC dismissed the case, stating it had “no realistic prospect of succeeding.” He concluded that the council’s ownership of the hard drive was legally valid, and its refusal to allow the search was justified under environmental regulations. The judge added, “There are no reasonable grounds for bringing this case, and no compelling reason why it should proceed to trial.”

Howells, who was represented by lawyers working pro bono, expressed disappointment at the ruling. He has previously indicated his intention to take the matter to higher courts, including the Supreme Court.

For its part, the council has maintained that its environmental permits prohibit such a search and excavation, stressing the significant logistical and ecological challenges it would entail.

The case raises broader questions about the ownership of discarded property and the legal complications surrounding lost cryptocurrency. While Howells remains determined to fight on, the judgment leaves little room for optimism in his quest to reclaim the fortune he accidentally discarded over a decade ago.