
Grangemouth refinery officially ceases processing crude oil
From today, Petroineos has said it will be importing "all the products necessary to meet Scotland's demand for transport fuels".
In September last year the company said the refining activities would cease in 2025 as it transitions to becoming an import terminal for finished fuels.
Yesterday, the UK Government was urged to take 'urgent and decisive action' over the £200 million promised to Grangemouth workers in February.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the UK Government would invest £200m into Grangemouth and that it should bring in 'three times that' in private funding, bringing the total to £800m.
The financial package from the UK Government is an attempt to ensure that high-quality jobs and economic opportunity are not lost in the area.
Owners Petroineos, which is shutting the plant this year with a loss of around 400 jobs, said the site makes a loss of £380,000 every day.
READ MORE: Crucial new report spells out nine options for Grangemouth – see the full list
However, Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes urged Starmer to accelerate the progress on the Acorn Carbon Capture project at Peterhead after the UK Government announced further funding for carbon capture projects in England without mention of finance or progress for the Scottish Cluster.
At the time of the announcement, the SNP accused the Labour Government of treating Scotland as an afterthought.
On Tuesday, at a parliamentary debate on supporting Scottish industry, Forbes is expected to call on the UK Government to be more transparent with the funds ringfenced for Grangemouth.
Iain Hardie, regional head of legal and external affairs, said: 'Grangemouth refinery is no longer processing crude oil. Petroineos has invested £50 million in creating a modern import and distribution terminal capable of receiving finished fuels by sea for onward distribution to customers around the country.
'From today, we will be importing all the products necessary to meet Scotland's demand for transport fuels.'
He continued: 'We would like to pay tribute to the workforce here. Our colleagues have shown incredible commitment, dignity and resilience during months of uncertainty regarding the future of this facility, through the consultation period, phased shutdown and the start of refinery decommissioning.
'It has been a challenging period but their professionalism has ensured security of fuel supply to our customers across Scotland and beyond.'
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