The cooling towers at Rugeley Power Station in Staffordshire have been demolished in a controlled explosion.

The 117m high concrete cooling towers that have dominated the skyline for decades. Members of the community watched the livestreamed event to remove the last major component of Rugeley B Power Station following the plant’s closure in 2016.

Energy firm ENGIE will now progress with plans to redevelop its site into a low-carbon mixed use community. It will be the first time a major UK energy company will lead the repurposing of one of its own sites. As master developer, ENGIE will combine its unique combination of capabilities in energy, services and regeneration, to lead the transformation.

Rugeley B Power Station which was opened in 1970, ceased generation in 2016. In 2018 ENGIE announced plans to transform the former 1 GW coal fired station into an entirely new, sustainable and smart community.

After three years of extensive community engagement and planning, authorities granted outline planning permission in April this year, to deliver a mixed-use development of 2,300 new low carbon homes with a low-carbon all through school. The wider Rugeley masterplan also includes more than 12 acres of employment space, a new neighbourhood centre and a country park alongside the River Trent – providing access to a section of riverside which has been inaccessible for decades.

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Demolition of the cooling tower structures marks the start of the redevelopment phase and a new chapter for the town – moving from coal-based technology to one of the lowest carbon mixed use developments of its size in the UK. To realise this potential, ENGIE will look to use a number of innovative technologies and community energy solutions, including onsite renewable energy generation and smart homes which incorporate battery and solar PV solutions.

Energy Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: "We are committed to building back greener from the pandemic and ENGIE’s low carbon regeneration project is a great initiative demonstrating how industrial sites can be revitalised to provide sustainable living.

"This innovative redevelopment will help breathe new life into the local community, providing new jobs, thousands of low carbon homes and a new school, while supporting our ambitious climate commitments."

Colin Macpherson, Divisional CEO for ENGIE UK & Ireland, said: "The next ten years are crucial to address the climate crisis – and in the same timescale this regeneration project will become a reference of sustainable living, fit for the UK’s net-zero future. The local people have been at the heart of every decision, concept and planning application, with our teams determined to deliver something special for the people of Rugeley – that will inject new life, jobs, homes and education into the community.

"This is a really meaningful example of building back greener and better in the wake of the Covid pandemic and we are lucky to have had the backing and support of Cannock Chase District Council, Lichfield District Council and Staffordshire County Council to bring this to fruition. We hope this regeneration could become a blueprint for other UK former carbon intensive industrial centres to create positive outcomes for their communities compatible with a net-zero future."