SIMEC Atlantis Energy Ltd on Wednesday posted a greatly widened loss as it described the past 12 months as ‘very challenging’.

Pretax loss of the Edinburgh-based energy company in 2021 widened to £74.1 million from £19.4 million in 2020.

SIMEC Atlantis Energy shares fell 28% to 1.48 pence each in London on Wednesday morning.

The firm highlights its ‘very difficult’ April decision to cancel the conversion of the coal-powered Power Station in Uskmouth in Newport, Wales, from coal to waste-derived fuel pellets.

‘A combination of the recovery from Covid, the COP26 meetings in Glasgow, and the war in Ukraine, have provided an increased focus on, and resulting acceleration of, the pressing need for decarbonisation, but also on the imperative for energy security,’ SIMEC said.

In the future, the company said it still aims to secure coal conversion projects.

Referring to Uskmouth, it said: ‘We are planning to redevelop the site into a sustainable energy park. The site has a number of valuable features, including a significant and upgradeable connection to the UK National Grid, a significant amount of land, rail and port access, proximity to major commercial and industrial power users, and a nearby gas pipeline.

‘We are developing a comprehensive plan for the redevelopment of the Uskmouth site, and we were delighted to announce in May 2022 the first step in this plan, the development of a 230 megawatt battery energy storage project at the site,’ it explained.

The firm is focusing on its development efforts in eastern Europe, it added. ‘We are already working with our partners on a number of early-stage opportunities and look forward to bringing these projects forward through development and into construction,’ SIMEC said.

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