SSE has today (Monday) confirmed a sale agreement for the non-operational Uskmouth coal-fired power plant in Newport, South Wales. The plant's new owner is a consortium of international investors with interests in a wide range of mining, coal and cement production assets worldwide.
Following intense efforts to secure a sustainable future for Uskmouth and its 83 strong workforce earlier this year, it was with regret that SSE announced that the plant would close in May 2014. Today’s deal allows a new company to take over site and determine its future under a new business model.
Paul Smith, SSE’s Managing Director of Generation said:
"As a responsible operator and employer, SSE has invested a great deal of time in order to achieve today’s positive outcome for the expired Uskmouth plant. Suitable purchasers for such assets are very limited in today’s marketplace and signing over the decommissioned site to the consortium was the next logical step for a plant that had reached the end of its operational life within SSE’s portfolio. We are hopeful the Uskmouth plant will have a viable future under its new owner, which we believe has a workable business plan and can take the asset forward.
“SSE ensured when we announced the closure of Uskmouth back in May that our employees were afforded the best possible terms of relocation or departure. The new buyer has indicated, subject to their future work plans for the site, that there would be the opportunity for re-hiring former (SSE) employees”.