Scotland’s Grangemouth oil refinery will close next year, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs. Its owner, Petroineos, said the facility could not compete with other sites in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. However, the site is set to be repurposed as an import terminal that will allow Scotland to fuel supply for the region, although this will require fewer employees to operate it than the current workforce of over 400. The closure of the refinery would see fuel imports into Scotland rise, while the country’s primary supplier of aviation fuel would vanish. Last November, the company announced its intention to close the plant.
The BBC understands that the refinery has been losing around $500,000 per day and is set to lose about $200m in 2024. Frank Demay, CEO of Petroineos, said: “Demand for key fuels we produce at Grangemouth has already started to decline and, with a ban on new petrol and diesel cars due to come into force within the next decade, we foresee that the market for those fuels will shrink further”. The refinery is the oldest in the UK and provides around 14% of the country’s total refining abilities. It accounts for almost two-thirds of the demand for refined oil in Scotland.
First Minister John Swinney expressed disappointment, with workers reacting similarly. Union leaders also criticized both governments and the management for the move. Between 250 to 280 redundancies are set to be carried out in the three months post-closure, with only 100 employees retained, 20 being retained for a minimum of half a year to aid decommission and development of the import business, with the additional 20 to help with decommissioning.
The Scottish government plans to work closely with the UK government to build an investment plan to secure the industrial future of Grangemouth. Despite a $1.2bn investment since 2011, Petroineos has recorded more than $775m in losses since then. The closure of the facility comes after years of being targeted by environmental protestors who called for its closure
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