Council leader calls on Government to step in and save Vivergo plant

THE leader of Hull City Council has called for Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds to intervene to rescue the UK's largest bioethanol plant.

- By MARK PAGE

Vivergo Fuels has warned that, if the Government does not act, it might have to shut down its Saltend facility - a direct employer of 160 staff - following the axing of a 19 per cent tariff on imported US ethanol, which formed part of the recent UK-US trade agreement.

Councillor Mike Ross, leader of Hull City Council, claimed the plant is being "sacrificed on the altar of a deal with Donald Trump".

Cllr Ross highlighted Vivergo’s role in not only providing direct employment, but also in sustaining a wider economic network in the Humber area, including agriculture partners who supply wheat for production.