A CHIMNEY stack at Stanlow Refinery in Ellesmere Port was demolished on Sunday (December, 11).

Demolition plans were put forward for the redundant facility, previously owned by Shell, in December 2020.

The plant consisted of vessels, compressors, line work, furnaces, a chimney stack, reactors, and the supporting structures to these elements.

In December 2021, Essar released a YouTube video of the 'Successful demolition of the Alcohols Plant at Stanlow'.

On Sunday, the (SHOP) stack was demolished by Essar Oil.

A spokesperson for Essar Oil UK Limited said: "The demolition that took place on Sunday was the Shell Higher Olefins Process (SHOP) which was used to manufacture intermediate chemicals used in the: plastic, detergent, adhesive, rubber, and food packaging industries.

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"The area has been decommissioned for a number of years and as part of Essar’s ambitious plans to create an energy transition hub at Stanlow - the stack has been demolished.

"The Essar Manufacturing Complex is quite a large site with numerous projects so this SHOP area will be cleared in readiness for the next project on the site. 

"There are numerous projects planned on-site including the manufacturing of hydrogen on site which will help most of the North West reach net zero through the HyNet project."

Watch the moment the (SHOP) stack was demolished:

A resident who lives around two miles away from the stack, said that the demolition "shook their house".

Another said: "Well there she blows! Big part of my life gone in a blast."

One added: "Sad thing but new things on the horizon."