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PROPOSED CLOSURE OF FIDDLER'S FERRY COAL STATION
PROPOSED CLOSURE OF FIDDLER'S FERRY COAL STATION.
About this update from Sse Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 1284C SSE PLC 13 June 2019 \n\n \nSSE plc\nPROPOSED CLOSURE OF FIDDLER'S FERRY COAL-FIRED POWER STATION\n \nSSE plc has completed a review of its Fiddler's Ferry Coal-Fired Power Station and proposes to close the remaining operational capacity at Warrington, Cheshire. SSE is now commencing consultation with employees and trade unions with a view to closing the station by 31 March 2020.\nThe station has a combined operational capacity of 1,510MW and holds Transmission Entry Capacity (the right to export power onto the transmission system) of 1,455MW. Fiddler's Ferry is the only remaining operational coal-fired station in SSE's fleet. In March 2019, SSE announced the closure of Fiddler's Ferry Unit 1 (485MW).\nBackground\nIn recent years, a number of factors have weighed heavily on the viability of this asset. As national and international policies focus on promoting lower-carbon forms of electricity generation in a bid to tackle climate change, the economics of coal-fired stations have become increasingly challenged. The UK has committed to ending unabated coal-fired electricity generation by 2025, and yesterday the Government confirmed it would legislate to achieve a net zero carbon emissions target by 2050. \nThe volume of electricity generated at Fiddler's Ferry is reducing year on year and the station has had limited success in Capacity Market auctions. This means that financial performance has deteriorated to unsustainable levels, with losses of around £40million in FY18/19 and projections for further losses in future years.\nOver the years, Fiddler's Ferry has been a valuable asset in SSE's diverse generation portfolio; however, the station is approaching 50 years old, and despite considerable efforts to reduce costs, it is unable to compete with more efficient and modern gas and renewable plant. \nSSE itself has adopted a target to reduce the carbon intensity of the electricity it generates by 50% by 2030, compared to 2018 levels.\nNext Steps\nSSE employs 158 people at its coal-fired operations at Fiddler's Ferry. Following collective consultation on the proposed closure it is hoped that some employees will be redeployed elsewhere in the SSE group, and some will have a continuing role in managing the decommissioning of the plant. SSE will also offer employees voluntary redu...