A POWER struggle has forced one of Bromyard’s biggest employers to scale back its expansion.

Holden Aluminium wanted to increase its output after acquiring the Securidor premises on the Station Industrial Estate.

But their request for extra power has hit a snag – as the town is running on empty because of an ageing infrastructure.

Town councillors heard on Monday that changes in power regulation could stagnate local development.

Managing director Richard Williams told councillors he has asked Western Power for 650kva to run his extra machinery.

He was initially offered just 86kva before eventually getting enough power to run on weekends and evenings.

Mr Williams stressed to councillors that the power was available but the infrastructure was restricting its supply. He said other firms would face the same issue unless Western Power spent roughly £250,000 on a new loop.

“The whole infrastructure of the town has to be upgraded and we’ve discovered we would have to pay a portion,” he said.

“We’ve just virtually doubled our premises, we’ve got some good orders and we want to expand so what can I do?

“The only way we can have power is to have a new loop system, but someone has to pay for the upgrade".

Mr Williams said buying a generator could be more cost-effective, but would only side-step the issue for the rest of the town.

Councillors agreed to ask Herefordshire Council for support in lobbying Western Power to make improvements.