Uniper, which owns and operates eight power plants across the UK, including hard coal power plant Ratcliffe-On-Soar in Nottinghamshire, is reportedly seeking billions from the German Government to stay afloat.

Bloomberg reported the German ministers are already drafting a potential bailout package of as much as €9 billion (£7.6bn).

It is believed that the reduced gas flows from Russia had a significant impact on the company’s power supplies.

In an interview with Reuters, a board member of trade union Verdi called for quick support to help the company survive.

Verdi board member Christoph Schmitz told Reuters: “The situation at Uniper is very serious.

“A real shareholding by the federal government, not just collateral and loans, would be a clear signal that there is a sustained guarantee of energy supply security.”

ELN has approached Uniper for a response.