Lee Barron MP met Corby Power Station Plant Manager Brian Harvey who explained the company has been operating in the town, on ex-steelworks land since 1993.
“Corby Power Station has been at the heart of the local economy for over thirty years and I wanted to visit and learn first-hand of their plans for the future.” said Lee Barron MP following the visit.
The plant is owned by ESB (Electricity Supply Board) and is operational 24/7. It delivers energy to consumers when a company falls off the National Grid and is currently at 'peaking phase', meaning that it generally runs only when there is a high demand for electricity, in order to balance the grid.
“Corby Power Station is coming to the end of its life and the site will be up for sale later this year.” Lee Barron MP continued. “While it has been part of our landscape since 1993, it is encouraging that ESB is looking for its power plants to transition to net zero fuel hydrogen.”
“It was also good to hear that in the UK, the company is 10 years ahead in the development process of alternative fuels compared to their sites in Ireland.”
Corby Power Station employs 12 workers and in 2019 delivered compulsory redundancies, where 11 employees moved to another plant.
The plant will cease operating on this unit in September 2025 with ESB providing enhanced redundancy packages for its workers.
ESB are a business that has a leading role is helping power lots of EV charging points across the UK including in London, Coventry and Birmingham.
“It was fascinating to hear of the role that a plant in our constituency plays an important role in the everyday life of our community.” Lee Barron continued. “During commercial breaks on TV shows such as Coronation Street, or after the programme has finished and people leave to go the toilet or to use the kettle, there are power spikes, meaning that this unit, in our constituency fills in the gaps.”
The Member of Parliament for Corby and East Northamptonshire has recently spoken in the historic Parliamentary debate on the future of British Steel and the nationalisation of the Scunthorpe plant. He shared with MPs in the House of Commons the history of Corby as a ‘steel town’ and how its economy was decimated when the works closed here.