On 24 March 2021, upon the petition of the directors, winding-up orders were made against the Baglan group of Companies, which include:

• Calon Energy (Baglan Bay) Limited;
• Baglan Generating Limited;
• Baglan Pipeline Limited; and
• Baglan Operations Limited.

The court appointed the Official Receiver, Gareth Jonathan Allen, as Liquidator. Upon the Official Receiver’s application, the court appointed David John Pike and Michael Robert Pink from Interpath Advisory as Special Managers to assist with the liquidation.

Background

The Baglan group of companies comprise of a gas turbine power station located in Baglan Bay, South Wales. In June 2020 the ultimate parent company entered administration and in July 2020 the power station ceased generating electricity. Power is supplied to customers, which includes the Baglan Energy Park, through a substation on the site, known as the private wire network.

Baglan Energy Park, a 180-acre site, remains home to a large number of other businesses and organisations, and the Official Receiver has striven to ensure all key stakeholders have been kept abreast of developments.

Liquidation

A liquidator’s statutory duties are set out in insolvency legislation and their primary role is to ensure the assets of the companies are realised and distributed to creditors. The legislation also sets out that a liquidator is only empowered to carry on the business of a company where it is necessary for the beneficial winding up of the company. In order to facilitate an orderly wind-down of operations at the site, the Official Receiver has maintained the supply of electricity the Energy Park from the private wire network since his appointment in March 2021. This included the maintenance and operation of the high voltage electricity lines with all the associated risks to health and life, for which the Official Receiver is personally liable.

The Official Receiver and Special Managers have worked tirelessly with key stakeholders to keep them informed of developments in real time and explained the limits of the Official Receiver’s statutory powers as liquidator to continue electricity supply, stressing the urgency for customers and stakeholders to develop contingency plans.

This has been and continues to be a complex and challenging liquidation. As part of the closure plan the Official Receiver has also carried out other significant activities at the site, including removing hazardous substances and depressurising the 11.8 km high pressure gas pipeline.

Latest developments

Following applications to court challenging the Official Receiver’s decision to terminate the supply of electricity, the Court determined the applications and handed down its judgment, dismissing the applications and granting the applicants leave to appeal. A date for the appeal hearing is yet to be confirmed. The court also ordered that the supply of electricity to customers must continue until conclusion of the appeal process or customers request the disconnection of electricity supply.

The Official Receiver is pleased to announce that the Baglan customers have now sourced alternative electricity supply via connection to the new Western Power Distribution network, or by utilising temporary generators.

Following the receipt of customer disconnection requests, as of 8 July 2022, the Baglan group of Companies no longer supply electricity to customers. The Official Receiver is now engaging with contractors to carry out the de-energisation works and complete remaining closure activities, upon which the site will be disclaimed.

The Official Receiver thanks the employees of the Baglan group of Companies for their commitment throughout the course of the liquidations and the safe delivery of operations and closure activities at the Baglan site.

If you are a customer or creditor of the Baglan group of companies, please contact the Special Managers via email: baglancustomers@interpathadvisory.com.

Thank you very much Mr Chair.

I would like to say congratulations on the wonderful news to those who have won the Nobel Prize.

I would also like to add our thanks to the organisers of this year’s Human Dimension Conference, to all those who have arranged side events and to all those who have spoken, including through our excellent interpreters.

Now, more than ever, platforms like this are vital to give government officials, international experts, civil society representatives and human rights defenders an opportunity to take stock and reflect on the state of human rights and fundamental freedoms across the OSCE region.

This conference has taken place under the dark cloud of President Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine. A war which has had an impact on human rights and fundamental freedoms, not only in Ukraine and the Russian Federation, but across the OSCE region. The UK strongly condemns the sham referenda in the areas under temporary Russian control. The UK will never recognise the supposed outcome.

I would like to thank the inspiring human rights defenders and civil society representatives for their courage, tireless and selfless work and their bravery in sharing their stories with us over the past two weeks.

I want to reassure you that we have heard you.

We have heard your recommendations: to use OSCE monitoring tools, such as the Moscow Mechanism, effectively and ensure that recommendations are followed up upon; to support Human Rights Defenders working in country as well as in exile; to use our statements to support victims of oppressive governments and to call out those responsible for such oppression. We have noted many more.

We have heard the requests of those working on fundamental freedoms in Russia to differentiate between President Putin’s regime and the people of Russia.

We have heard your calls not to neglect the backsliding of human rights, fundamental freedoms and democracy in other participating States.

We have heard from the formidable and unwavering wives, mothers and sisters of Ukrainian political prisoners, detained civilians, and those forcibly disappeared, many of whom remain detained and many who remain missing to this day, their families resolutely searching for scraps of information on their whereabouts. To name, but a few, of those who are detained or disappeared:

Serhiy Tsyhipa

Mykyta Buzinov

Nariman Dzelyal

Asan Akhmetov

Aziz Akhtemov

Vladyslav Yesypenko

Iryna Danilovych

Mykola Masliy

Yevhen Hurianov

Olha Melnychenko

We share in the hope of their loved ones – that they will be found, released and reunited.

We think of others across the region, including Vladimir Kara-Murza and the 1,300 political prisoners in Belarus.

We urge Russia and Belarus to engage with us and with the families who deserve answers.

We will continue to raise cases until political prisoners are free and the whereabouts of those forcibly disappeared are revealed. We will not forget.

Thank you Mr Chair.

During the next five years, Royal Navy ships will undergo a series of technical upgrades to their Magazine Torpedo Launch Systems and threat countermeasure capabilities, the latter of which will help ensure the ships continue to counter the threat of hostile anti-ship missiles.

The contract was award to Systems Engineering & Assessment (SEA) in Devon.

Sustaining 150 UK jobs across Barnstaple, Beckington and Bristol in the south west of England, the upgrades will ensure that critical systems on Type 23 frigates continue to operate reliably, and that upgrades can be seamlessly adopted and installed until their out of service dates.

The Type-23 frigate carries out a wide variety of operations, including securing the UK’s vital maritime trade routes East of the Suez Canal and safeguarding British interests in the South Atlantic. This week the Royal Navy deployed HMS Somerset to play a leading role in protecting critical energy infrastructure, working with Norway and our allies in the North and Norwegian Seas.

Minister for Defence Procurement, Alec Shelbrooke, said:

These crucial upgrades will help to ensure our Royal Navy ships remain equipped with the latest counter-threat capability.

Supporting 150 jobs at sites across the UK, this contract is another example of how we are investing in the future, sustaining UK jobs and securing cutting-edge defence capabilities.

Type 23 frigates will have electronic upgrades to Seagnat, a system which safeguards the vessel against incoming missiles by firing a variety of decoys to defeat incoming missiles.

Some ships will also undergo a further technical upgrade to their Magazine Torpedo Launch Systems – a close range, quick reaction Anti-Submarine weapon system which launches torpedoes from tubes mounted in the vessel’s magazine.

The contract was placed by the Maritime Equipment and Warfare (MEWT) team at Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), the procurement arm of the UK Ministry of Defence.

DE&S’ Director Ships Support Rear Admiral Jim Higham:

I’m incredibly proud of our team which has worked so hard to place this contract, ensuring Type 23 has the battle-winning capability it needs to perform their critical role in the Royal Navy fleet now and into the future.

In addition to Type 23 updates, the contract will also upgrade Seagnat systems during the next five years on Type 45 destroyers and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) tankers, which provide fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world.

The contract also secures five further years of support for the systems on board the vessels with improved provision for spares.

The equipment supported under this contract (Magazine Torpedo Launch Systems, Seagnat and Air Weapons Handling) are used on various ships in the Royal Navy such as Type 23 frigates, Type 45 destroyers, Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC), Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels and Albion-class Landing Platform Docks.

Richard Flitton, Managing Director at Systems Engineering & Assessment said:

This major contract, SEA’s largest to date, demonstrates the systems knowledge and maritime domain expertise within our UK-based team and builds on our long-standing partnership with the Royal Navy.