An extraordinary meeting of a council scrutiny committee was held on Monday (2nd October), following a request by opposition councillors to “call in” a recent decision by Bridgend Council’s Cabinet to withdraw its support for the Hybont project in Brynmenyn.
The grounds for the call in (pdf) included:
- Poor scrutiny by the Cabinet, who “failed to challenge the assumptions in the officer’s report” or ask pertinent questions.
- Incomplete and confusing financial information in the report itself, with no questions asked as to whether BCBC could claim back money they’ve already spent on Hybont (just under £150,000).
- There was no indication as to how reliant Bridgend Council is on Hybont to deliver its net-zero carbon reduction ambitions.
- BCBC was set to take a stake in the joint venture in return for land; there were no questions regarding the market value of that land or how the possible loss of that land (through BCBC’s withdrawal) affects the project’s viability.
Hybont project “not over” but heat network “won’t continue”
The only new bit of information from the meeting was confirmation that the Cabinet’s decision means a proposed district heat network – which would have provided energy to Ynysawdre Sports Centre and local schools – won’t go ahead.
As for the rest of the project, it’s not over even if BCBC are no longer directly involved. The plant is being funded by the Welsh Government, Cardiff City Region and Marubeni. The issue of council-owned land will be up for further discussion.
The reason behind the Cabinet’s decision was explained in more detail by Corporate Director for Communities, Janine Nightingale.
In short, BCBC needed to find an additional £500,000+ to fund the financial, legal and technical checks (called due diligence) to determine whether Hybont was viable from the council’s point of view. Officers decided the council couldn’t afford to fund this work or the heat network.
Additionally, BCBC will need to decide if switching to hydrogen-powered refuse and recycling vehicles is the best option; those new vehicles could be at least partially funded by the Welsh Government.
Opportunity to “ask questions the Cabinet ignored”
Cllr. Ian Spiller (Ind, Bryntirion, Laleston & Merthyr Mawr) accepted that investments carry risk, but the due diligence work should have been properly budgeted to know if Hybont was worthwhile from the start.
There was confusion over the Memorandum of Understanding and whether it was a legally binding agreement. Cllr. Tim Thomas (Ind, Ynysawdre & St. Bride’s Minor) believed the wording suggested it was, though the council’s legal officer said it established a common understanding or a pre-agreement, not a formal legally binding one.
Cllr. Ian Williams (Ind, Oldcastle) and Cllr. Steven Bletsoe (Ind, Bridgend Central) said there were plenty of questions that should have been asked by the Cabinet that weren’t, with the only two questions being related to planning not finances.
Cabinet Member for Communities, Cllr. John Spanswick (Lab, Brackla West Central), disputed this. He revealed detailed private discussions with officers before the Cabinet meeting, but it was suggested by Cllr. Freya Bletsoe (Ind, Oldcastle) that this meant the decision was pre-determined (meaning councillors had made their mind up before the meeting, which isn’t allowed).
Will Bridgend miss out on a big opportunity?
Cllr. Martin Williams (Ind, Coity Higher) was in no doubt that if the other three partners are pressing ahead without BCBC then it’s worth their while in some way. Was Bridgend Council turning down a big opportunity for the sake of £500,000 and some land they already own?
Also, if it was too costly for Bridgend, why haven’t they reached out to neighbouring councils along the M4 for their backing?
Councillors were told it was hard to find out what the return on investment would be due to the pausing of due diligence work. It was unclear what the situation was regarding the BCBC-owned land.
Cllr. Freya Bletsoe wanted to know if there would be any additional costs if net-zero deadlines were missed. However, the committee was informed that BCBC has already made good progress, with a 38% cut in emissions so far.
There was support for the Cabinet’s decision.
Cllr. Melanie Evans (Lab, Pencoed & Penprysg) believed there were too many unknowns, with budget pressures only likely to increase.
Meanwhile, Cllr. Graham Walter (Lab, Porthcawl East Central) thought the meeting was going around in circles and it was unclear what the call-in signatories wanted to achieve.
Following the discussion, councillors voted by 8 to 3 not to refer the decision back to the Cabinet for reconsideration.
