Ironbridge Power Station still out of action weeks after fire ripped through building

Energy giant Eon confirmed that the power station was still not generating electricity while an investigation into the cause of the fire on February 4 was being carried out.

The fire happened in the station's turbine hall.

Spokeswoman Roxanne Postle said: "A full investigation into the incident is ongoing.

"Until the events and cause of the incident are fully understood and the damage to the plant has been assessed, we are unable to give an indication of the plant's return to full operation."

The fire was believed to have been started in the bearings of one of the main turbines and damage was contained to the turbine hall.

The fire sparked a major emergency incident, with eight fire engines and thirty firefighters called to the scene after thick smoke was seen billowing from the building.

There were no injuries and the fire was contained within the building.

The fire at the plant in Buildwas Road happened at around 6am and firefighters had to wait two hours before they were able to get into the site for safety reasons.

Crews were then at the plant for almost 12 hours damping down the area.

E.on said at the time that supplies to homes and businesses in the area would not be affected by the incident.

The site, famous for its pink cooling towers, is the only major generator of electricity in Shropshire.

It consumes 1.2 million tons of coal and 20,000 tonnes of oil each year.

The ageing power station, which is due to close in 2015, was last year controversially converted to burn wood pellets instead of coal.