Longannet: Grangemouth residents prepare for final countdown

A ScottishPower spokesperson said: “The 600ft chimney at Scotland’s last remaining coal fired power station, Longannet, will be brought down tomorrow, Thursday, December 9, in a controlled explosion at 9am.

“We are working with partners Brown and Mason and Police Scotland to ensure the blow down is carried out safely. The iconic chimney at Longannet has dominated the Firth of Forth skyline for over fifty years.

“We know the local community will want to watch the blow down and we would ask anyone thinking of coming out ensures they are watching from a safe distance, adheres to any road closures in the area which are there to keep people safe and also remains vigilant when it comes to social distancing.”

The writing was on the wall for the Kincardine power station, which opened in 1973, as soon as Scotland and the world made a commitment to move away from coal-fired facilities to more environmentally friendly means of power generation.

However, the plant still far exceeded its original three decade lifespan and operated for 46 years, eventually being decommissioned in 2016.

Back in 2018 Spanish rolling stock engineering company Talgo, which specialises in manufacturing fast, lightweight trains for countries like the USA and Saudi Arabia, announced the Longannet site was preferred location for its new factory.

According to Talgo, the factory would initially occupy an area of 70,000 square metres and its construction would take 18 months with at least 1000 people working on site once it was complete.

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