Closure date set for Wales’ biggest open cast coal mine
The operator of an opencast mine which has been ordered to stop its operations has confirmed it will close later this year.
Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd, which runs Ffos-y-Fran in Merthyr Tydfil, has submitted a notification to the Welsh Government[1] confirming a closure date of November 30, BBC[2] News reports.
The confirmed closure will leave its roughly 180 workers redundant. The BBC reported that the company said it was currently “dealing with the human fall-out from this sad announcement” and would be making no further comment.
The Merthyr Tydfil site, which opened in 2007, produces two-thirds of the UK's coal and its closure has been a controversial and ongoing issue.[4]. It was supposed to close in September after its planning permission expired. Since then, more than 200,000 tonnes of coal[5] has been extracted.
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council refused an application in April which would've extended the mine's time of operation to March 2024. Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd previously said the coal was needed for the steel industry but council planning officials said it had failed to clearly demonstrate that the extraction of coal was needed to support industrial, non-energy-generating uses.
Residents led a long-running campaign calling for it to be shut down, claiming their lives were constantly being made miserable by coal and dust as well as noise. Some of the closest houses were less than 40m away.
The mine is the size of about 400 football pitches and figures have shown that between September 7, 2022, and March 31, 2023, workers at the site dug up around 199,307 tonnes of coal.
References
- ^ Welsh Government (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ BBC (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ Pictures show scale of damage caused to Newport industrial estate by huge fire (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ has been a controversial and ongoing issue. (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ more than 200,000 tonnes of coal (www.walesonline.co.uk)