MORE than 280 jobs are to go at a Cheshire West manufacturing site.

CF Fertilisers UK Limited has announced it plans to close its Ince site as part of a restructuring of its UK operations so it can position the business for long-term profitability and sustainability.

The firm supplies fertiliser, carbon dioxide and other industrial products to domestic customers, but was hit hard last September when a surge in the cost of energy prompted it to close two factories in Ince and Billingham. The latter later reopened thanks to Government support, but CF Fertilisers confirmed in its announcement the Ince plant has not produced ammonia since September last year.

In its announcement on Wednesday, June 8, the company said: "The company believes that the [Billingham] facility is better positioned for long-term sustainability as it has sufficient capacity to meet all forecasted domestic demand for AN fertiliser from CF Fertilisers UK, is more efficient than the Ince manufacturing facility, has an installed industrial customer base, and has the ability to import ammonia.

"Aligned with this approach, the company is proposing to permanently close the Ince manufacturing facility near Chester, which could result in up to 283 redundancies at the site; the Ince manufacturing facility has not produced ammonia since September 2021."

The firm added further restructuring in its UK operation would result in up to 88 further redundancies, but added some of the proposed redundancies might be avoided by redeployment opportunities.

The company added: "The company will be entering into collective redundancy consultation with its recognised union, Unite, and elected employee representatives regarding its redundancy proposals."

Brett Nightingale, managing director of CF Fertilisers UK, said: “The people and facilities that make up CF Fertilisers UK are part of a proud, 100-year history of providing customers in the UK with products vital to the country’s food security and industrial activity.

"However, as a high-cost producer in an intensely competitive global industry, we see considerable challenges to long-term sustainability from our current operational approach. Following a strategic review of our business, we believe that the best way to continue our legacy of serving customers in the UK is to operate only the Billingham manufacturing facility moving forward while addressing cost pressures throughout our business.

“We expect to begin collective redundancy consultation with union and other employee representatives shortly. We intend to provide our team with all possible support through what we recognise will be a very challenging time for them.”

Providing context to the firm's financial struggles, the announcement added: "The company’s AN fertiliser sales volumes to domestic customers have fallen by nearly 30 percent since the 2017-18 season due to intense competition from lower-cost imports.

"As a result, when both plants are producing AN even at minimum levels, the company has not been able to profitably sell the entire volume domestically over the last four years. This has caused CF Fertilisers UK to increasingly turn to exporting at unsustainably low margins in order to continue to operate both facilities.

"As carbon costs continue to increase substantially in the UK, the company expects that its production will be placed at an even larger competitive disadvantage against imports without a carbon border adjustment mechanism to ensure a level playing field."

Reacting to the news, Ellesmere Port and Neston MP Justin Madders said: "This is devastating news for the area and I am extremely concerned about the potential loss of so many good highly skilled jobs from local manufacturing.

"I will be working with the company and the trade union, Unite, to see if there are ways we can avoid these redundancies and retain in the area a company that has more than 50 years in Cheshire.

"I will be urging Government Ministers to do what they can to step in to minimise job losses."

Philip Cox, chief executive of Cheshire and Warrington LEP, said: “We are disappointed to hear that CF Fertilisers is planning to close its plant in Ince. Our priority now must be the employees impacted by this announcement. 

"This will be an unsettling time for those affected and our priority is to work with Cheshire West and Chester Council and other partners to ensure the employees get the support they need.”

Cheshire West and Chester Council leader, Cllr Louise Gittins and Andrew Lewis, the council's chief executive, met the company on Wednesday afternoon to offer support for the company and its employees.

Cllr Gittins said: “This is sad news, and our conversation this afternoon was to offer help and support for the employees and families should these proposals go ahead.

“Our business support teams are ready to do all they can to assist the workforce, the company and any of the local supply chains.”

The authority said in such circumstances the council would offer a comprehensive support package for any staff facing redundancy including the National Careers Service, Department for Work & Pensions, Springboard Cheshire, the Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership  and Work Zone programmes.

Cllr Gittins added: “The Ellesmere Port Industrial Area is currently seeing billions of pounds in future investment with many businesses expanding especially in the green energy areas and hydrogen production.

“My hope now is that any of the workforce affected would be able to take advantage of new opportunities in this exciting and expanding area.”

The Ince plant first started producing ammonia in 1965. While it has the facility to produce 'NPKs', which are compound fertilisers that blend nitrogen with other nutrients, including phosphate, potash and sulphur, the firm said such operations are currently economically unviable, as manufacturing it would result in heavy losses.