Net Stupid: UK’s Largest Glass Fibre Factory to Reportedly Shut Down over Energy Costs
Britain’s largest producer of fibre glass, a key component in wind turbines and electric cars, is reportedly set to shut down in part due to the high energy costs in the United Kingdom.
The Japanese-owned Electric Glass Fiber UK factory in Wigan, which employs around 250 people, is said to be set for closure after the left-wing Labour Party government failed to organise a buyout from Tokyo-based Nippon Electric Glass owners.
According to the BBC, the owners claimed that the factory operated at a £12 million loss last year due to increased competition from Chinese manufacturers, low sales, and the soaring cost of energy in Britain.
Britain currently has some of the most expensive energy prices in the world, in large part as a result of the very same green agenda which the Electric Glass Fiber UK factory assisted in through its production of the critical component to wind turbines and electric cars.
While defenders of ‘Net Zero’ in the UK, such as cabinet minister Ed Miliband, have attempted to cast blame for the sky high energy prices on the global price shocks following the coronavirus and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Westminster’s green agenda compounds many of these issues, with traditional forms of energy being taxed to subsidise so-called renewable forms of energy.
Additionally, while global price fluctuations do impact the price of natural gas and oil in Britain, the country is more vulnerable to such international pressures because the British government refuses to tap into the nation’s own resources, such as through the banning of fracking upheld by both establishment parties in London.
The promised financial benefits of energy sources like wind power have also been hampered by Britain’s outdated grid and inability to efficiently store excess energy during peak weather. Thus, the taxpayer is forced to pay wind energy firms millions to turn off their turbines so as not to overload the system.
On top of demonstrating the inherent follies of the green agenda, the planned closure of the Electric Glass Fiber UK factory further undermines the Labour government’s claims of seeking to reindustrialise Britain.
The London-based Tegu investment firm said that it was in negotiations to purchase the plant from Nippon. However, their request to have the government underwrite £5 million in dancing for the deal was ultimately shot down.
Tegu chairman Jack Khan told the Financial Times: “The fundamental issue here is that the UK government is standing by and watching British industry collapse.”
