The Esbjerg plant closes :
Mixed feelings among the operations manager and Ørsted's power plant manager

He still remembers the time, Esbjerg Power Plant Operations Manager Michael Normand Sørensen, when the first sign came that the owner Ørsted would move away from fossil fuels altogether.

- We were told in 2019 that Ørsted would no longer bet on coal. The vision was that it would be in 2022, says Michael Normand Sørensen, who has been involved since the plant was put into commercial operation in 1992.

Actually, the plant was supposed to have already been closed on March 31, 2023 – but that closure date ended up being postponed due to Russia's war in Ukraine to August 31, 2024. And now the 50 employees are going to move on.

- I handed out dismissal notices yesterday. 27 are quitting, 11 of them are retiring, and 16 are staying and cleaning up for about six months, and seven have found other jobs at Ørsted. It has been a good process, assures Michael Normand Sørensen.

The shutdown is also part of the operations manager's work, and when it is over, the plant will be demolished. The site will be returned to how it was before. After that, the Port of Esbjerg, which owns the site, can rent it out to a new tenant. When that will be, is not yet certain.

- The shutdown is a process that will take place until spring 2025, when the demolition will begin. It will probably take around a year and a half, says Ole Thomsen, Ørsted's power plant manager and SVP.

The economic carrot

The postponement of the shutdown has also meant that some employees ended up leaving the plant at the original closure date in March 2023.

- About six people left us because they had found other jobs at the time. They had found jobs at, for example, DIN Forsyning and SubC. And these were employees who were difficult to replace, but they succeeded anyway, says Michael Normand Sørensen.

His boss would like to reveal how he managed to retain sought-after employees in a hot industry.

- We can confirm that there has been a financial carrot with extended notice of termination, where employees are being made redundant, explains Ole Thomsen.

Good process but mixed feelings

However, both the operations manager and the power plant manager assure that the atmosphere has been good until the end.

- There has been enormous unity and community here, says Michael Normand Sørensen, who had to hand out dismissal letters on Wednesday on a day when there was also a lot of fun.

- We had a long and shared breakfast, explains Ole Thomsen.

Michael Normand Sørensen and Ole Thomsen agree on one thing, however. The operations manager showed this at breakfast yesterday.

- I talked to the employees about whether the flag should be up or at half-mast – but we had a normal day without a flag, says Michael Normand Sørensen, who also admits that he was moved during his speech to the employees.

- It's mixed feelings: I'm the manager of nine power plants, and now it's soon a smaller one, says Ole Thomsen.

However, there are also advantages to coal-fired power plants that renewable energy does not have, such as in periods when the wind is not blowing and the sun is not shining.

- We can ramp up and down production when needed. But I'm okay with that, because we have to take care of the environment, says Michael Normand Sørensen about the 1.5 million tons of coal that were fired at the plant annually.

Despite the mixed feelings, the unity and the end of an era must be concluded with a party.

- We are holding a farewell party for the employees on September 28th at the Music Hall here in Esbjerg, says Michael Normand Sørensen.