Prime minister to 'expect' work on £50m KGH energy plant to start in first months of 2024

Prime minister Rishi Sunak has told the House of Commons that work on the new energy plant planned for KGH – the first piece of the promised rebuild – to start early next year.

Responding to Philip Hollobone MP for Kettering at Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday (Wednesday), Mr Sunak said he would ‘expect’ work to begin in the ‘first quarter’ of 2024.

Kettering General Hospital is one of the 40 ‘new’ hospital buildings promised by Boris John’s government in 2019.

An estimated £400m of investment would be needed to complete the project by 2030 and Mr Hollobone urged to get ‘spades in the ground’ on schedule.

Mr Hollobone said: “The £400 million redevelopment of Kettering General Hospital is the number one investment priority for local residents. The first part is a £50 million new energy plant to power the expanded and improved hospital. Will the Prime Minister please do all he can to ensure that the Department of Health gets spades in the ground on time next spring, so that we can get the construction of our redeveloped, much-loved local hospital fully under way?”

The Prime Minister said: “We are absolutely committed to delivering the scheme for Kettering General Hospital. The new energy centre is vital to the delivery of the new hospital, and we expect that work to begin in the first quarter of next year. The new hospital programme is working closely with the trust to ensure that the plans are deliverable.”

Main construction is due to start in 2028, with initial enabling works already under way and the construction of a net-zero new energy plant for the expanded hospital due to start in spring 2024.

The first works residents may see is likely to be the highway trenching required for the laying of a £4m high voltage (HV) cable between Field Street in Kettering town centre – the nearest HV sub-station – and KGH.

The installation work due to start in January 2024 will see a cable go under the Rothwell Road railway bridge.

The larger hospital will include a new urgent care hub to replace and enhance the existing A&E.