London, March 22 : After 43 years of service, a coal-fired power station in Oxfordshire was turned off Friday after it opted out of an emissions reducing programme under the European Union, BBC reported.

The Didcot A power station began operating in 1970.

The closure of the 2,000 megawatt (MW) station was announced in September 2012.

Station manager Phil Noake called it a "very sad time for everyone at the power station".

Nine months of decommissioning would begin March 31, with demolition of the six towers expected to take several years.

Greenpeace campaigner Ben Stewart said it marked the beginning of the end of coal burning in Britain.

In 2003, the landmark was voted Britain's third worst eyesore.

The station opted out of the European Union's Large Combustion Plant Directive, aimed at reducing emissions across Europe.

It meant that the plant had to cease generation by the end of December 2015 at the latest, or once an allocated number of operational hours were completed.(IANS)