Vivergo’s decision to close its Hull plant appears premature - Yorkshire Post Letters
From: Tim Short, Dunnington, York.
The decision by Vivergo to close their plant in Hull does on the face of it appear to be premature particularly as the import of US bioethanol probably has not kicked in. I cannot help feeling that this is another case of an organisation expecting the UK citizens through the government to bail them out. There can be strategic reasons for this such as steel.
The bioethanol plant is owned by Associated British Foods, (the company also owns Primark).
Vivergo has made an operating loss, so what is the real reason for the decision? The clue might be in a statement on interim results issued by Associated British Foods on April 29 that stated “operating loss in our UK bioethanol business, Vivergo, are impacting overall profitability in 2025.”
Notwithstanding the elimination of the tariff on US imports of bioethanol, I wonder how long it would have been before the plant would have closed anyway if it continued to make a loss.