Powergen to axe 1,000 jobs at TXU retail arm

Powergen is to axe nearly 1,000 jobs at TXU following its takeover last year of the electricity supplier.

Almost 700 jobs will go at TXU's Ipswich headquarters while a further 276 will be lost with the closure of three retail operations in Rayleigh, Essex, Bolton and London.

Powergen, which is now owned by Eon of Germany, paid £1.6bn last year for TXU's retail operations and its two UK power stations. A spokesman said one-off costs of the cutbacks would be £120m but that it expected to make savings of £140m a year by the end of 2004.

Powergen has also decided to close the two power stations, High Marnham and Drakelow, which it inherited through the TXU deal with the loss of a further 200 jobs.

TXU staff will be offered jobs with Powergen's retail business in the East Midlands but the spokesman said it was unclear how many employees would relocate.