Ferrybridge Closure 'Devastating' for Workers
West Yorkshire MP Yvette Cooper says she’s seeking urgent meetings with energy SSE over the proposed closure of a West Yorkshire power station.
In a statement, SSE said that after a review it had taken the "difficult decision'' to close the Ferrybridge coal-fired power station by March 2016 amid rising costs.
The company said costs at the 48-year-old power station have been rising due to its age and it is forecast to lose £100 million over the next five years.
This, combined with the impact of environmental legislation and the political consensus that coal has a limited role in the future, make it unsustainable, said SSE.
Garry Graham is from the the union Prospect, and is warning it’ll have a big impact on the local community as well as threatening our energy bills.
“They are going to be devastated, these are high-quality, high-skilled jobs. We will be doing everything that we can to work with the company and others to retain those skills and jobs in the local area but that’s going to be a significant challenge.
“The impact on the consumer directly is going to be potentially higher energy prices. I think if we have a particularly cold winter, the lights might go out. There needs to be a strategic approach taken by the government in terms of addressing the energy needs for the UK.”
Paul Smith, SSE managing director of generation, said: "This was a very difficult decision to take because of the impact on our Ferrybridge employees, their families and the community.
"It's been known for many years that the UK would have to phase out coal as it moves towards a more sustainable energy mix. We've sought to protect jobs and invest in the site to keep it running for as long as we possibly could but ultimately we've had to make this regrettable decision today.''
SSE said it will redeploy the 172 workers affected by the announcement to other sites where possible.
Mr Smith said: "Our team at Ferrybridge is highly skilled, dedicated, with a strong track record of performance, and we're keen to ensure, where possible, that staff are redeployed across other parts of the SSE group, for example at the nearby Keadby power station, or across the wider business.
"We appreciate it is a concerning time for our employees and our priority is to support them over the coming weeks and months and ensure they have a range of options available to them for the future.''