'This area is really struggling - Mossmorran closure is bad news'

Moira Hunter and Peter Dunn said the closure would put strain on an already suffering community

On the edge of Exxon Mobil's petrochemical plant at Mossmorran in Fife lies the struggling community of Cowdenbeath.

Home to about 12,000 residents, the unemployment rate in the area is 8.7%, more than double that of Scotland as a whole.

Now the former mining town has been dealt another blow with the news that the chemical plant is to close in February.

Exxon Mobil, which said earlier this week there was not a "competitive future" for the site, confirmed 179 directly-employed jobs would be at risk, along with 250 contractors.

On the streets of Cowdenbeath, 66-year-old cleaner Peter Dunn told the BBC: "This area is really struggling.

"There's a lot of shops already closed so I think this is bad news."

Cowdenbeath High Street has already lost some key retailers

The town's High Street has suffered in recent years with the loss of key retailers such as Farmfoods in September and Iceland in 2023.

The street also lost its branch of the Bank of Scotland in July and a number of the shops are boarded up.

Stephens Bakery, which has been open in Cowdenbeath almost as long as the 40-year-old Mossmoran Ethylene Plant, manages to keep going.

But its assistant manager Susan Marshall said the site's closure was "devastating".

Susan Marshall said the closure would affect business

"We have a lot of customers from Mossmorran and we get a lot of orders for conferences and meetings, so this will affect our business," she said.

"This will affect not just us but the whole street.

"People come to the high street, not that there are many shops left for them, for their lunch and we have our regular customers from Mossmorran.

"A lot of shops have shut here and now the Mossmorran workers might have to move away from the area but we'll just have to cope."

Audrey Haldane, who lives three miles away in Lochgelly, said Cowdenbeath was her local area for shopping.

Audrey Haldane said shopping in Cowdenbeath would be affected by the closure of Mossmorran

"It's a shame it is closing because that's people out of a job and the area is already quite bad for unemployment," the 59-year-old said.

"This will also have a knock-on effect for businesses because if there is no money in the area then what happens to the shopping."

Jim Paterson, who has owned Kassy's Kitchenette for 27 years, said: "We are resilient in Cowdenbeath, we will bounce back from this."

Jim Paterson said the town would bounce back

The 66-year-old said: "The shopkeepers here have seen the highs and lows.

"The lowest has been the banks closing and companies closing and leaving the High Street such as Farmfoods, Woolworths, all these bigger named shops.

"But the independent shops like ourselves have overcome this. You just have to get your head down and get on with it."

Angela Lawrie, who owns the town's Delmor estate agent, said she was upset for the workers who would lose their job.

Angela Lawrie said the closure could benefit her business

She said the closure could mean people will have to go out of the area for work, meaning they would have to sell their house or downsize.

"It might boost business due to the fact some people might need to sell," she said.

Over the years Mossmoran was not always seen as the ideal neighbour.

Flaring, a process to burn off excess gas at the plant, caused years of noise and light pollution.

Mossmorran is to shut down in February

Exxon Mobil was fined £176,000 for six days of continuous flaring in April 2019, which caused houses to shake and generated hundreds of complaints.

The problem was mitigated with noise-reducing flare tips and enclosed ground flares.

Kirsty Archbold, who lives in nearby Kelty, said she felt relieved by the closure.

Kirsty Archbold said she has always worried about the safety of the area due to Mossmorran

She said: "I do feel sorry for the staff, 100%, but for the safety side you do often worry about it because you can sometimes feel the ground shudder so there is something very uncomfortable about it."

John Stagg, who lives 30 miles away in Bonnybridge, has worked at Mossmorran for three years as a scaffolder.

The 47-year-old father-of-three says he has a family that relies on his job.

He said: "We had been hearing rumours for the past couple of months about the possible sale of the site but the suddenness of the news has made me feel really quite angry and shocked.

"It is looking increasingly likely I will have to travel for work away from home, which is not an ideal situation.

"It's going to affect Christmas and the emotional impact is going to cause stress and anxiety."