Meeting Over Plans Close North Lincolnshire Power Stations

The MP for Scunthorpe will meet Centrica bosses today to discuss the proposed closure of two North Lincolnshire power stations.

The British Gas owner announced yesterday that it's started consulting on whether to shut its sites in Brigg and Killingholme - putting more than 50 jobs at risk.

It follows a big fall in profits last year with annual takings falling by 35% to £1.75 billion pounds.

MP Nic Dakin is disappointed with the news. He told Viking FM:

"It's always bad news when there's potential loss of facilities in our local area and this power station has been around for over 20 years. I want to get a full briefing to the background to where this decision making is and what the potential options are.

"Any job losses are of concern and we only recently had the announcement about the job losses at Lindsey Oil Refinery so this is not good news. What's important is that MPs like myself work with the company and the trade unions and others to make sure that we get the best possible outcome.

"The people who are in these jobs are people who are highly skilled and are very likely to get new jobs elsewhere but nonetheless, change of this sort is very unsettling for people and it would be far better if it wasn't happening. Hopefully we're going to be getting new jobs in the area in relation to the renewables industry."

Centrica say they have no choice but to consider shutting the plants due to difficult trading conditions - but say they'll do everything they can to support workers.

A Centrica spokesperson told us:

“Unfortunately we’ve had to make the difficult decision to consult on closing the Killingholme and Brigg power stations. We know this is an unsettling time for the team and the news will create a great deal of uncertainty but we will be doing everything we can to support them in the coming week.

“We have also taken the decision not to sell South Humber Bank power station. We’re incredibly proud of our team and what they do on site and I don’t think that the offers we received reflect the value that we place on these operations. We will therefore continue to operate the power station, which will play an important role in keeping the lights on for thousands of homes.”