Government plans to end UK coal fired power generation mean Fiddlers Ferry Power station near
Penketh could be used as a new employment site within the time frame of the new 20-year local plan
for Warrington.
Prospective Conservative MP for Warrington South, Andy Carter has written to the plant owner, SSE
asking them to be clear about their plans for the site, given the government has already made a
commitment to end ‘dirty’ fuels electricity production by 2025.
Andy says it’s a sensible step to look at all the options for brownfield land in the Borough so
that the Council are able to make best use of what’s available through to 2037;
“This area has huge potential; we know the site owners have already decided to close one of the
four generating units and I am keen that we understand their time line for what comes next, so that
the Council can consider how we mitigate the impact on jobs in the area by having a plan for
re-using this area”.
“The Council are supposed to be looking ahead over the 20-year period, identifying what land will
become available for future use throughout Warrington. The current plan makes few references to
Fiddlers Ferry as a future option, it’s too large to be ignored and could play a critical role in
minimising the release of green belt for commercial purposes, this area can’t just stand idle”.
The closure of all coal plants will be mandated within six years’ through the use of a new
emissions performance standard, which ministers introduced in 2016. The standard sets a limit on
the amount of carbon the plants can emit – 450g CO2 per kW hour – which coal operators could meet
only by retrofitting costly carbon capture equipment, meaning coal becomes uneconomical.
Data released by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy earlier this year
confirmed that coal fired power generation has continued to fall over the last 12 months with more
than 1,000 hours of coal free production since January. This holiday weekend a new record was set
of 255 continuous hours without resorting to coal.
Andy says he welcomes the steps the government is taking to change the way we create electricity; “Climate change is the most profound environmental challenge that we face as a nation, cutting carbon emissions by moving to renewable energy is part of a wider plan to achieve clean growth. The wider UK context sits alongside the actions we must take locally to improve air quality in Warrington to reduce the immediate health risks to everyone living here”.
