Hundreds of jobs face risk at major Scots firm – with ‘400 more axed every two weeks' warning
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HUNDREDS of Scots oil and gas jobs are set to be axed - with the worst to come.
Trade union bosses warn that over 140 jobs with the contractor Altrad, who provided operational support to the Petroineos oil refinery in Grangemouth, face losing their job at the end of June.
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Petroineos oil refinery site in Grangemouth is set to close completely
Credit: Getty
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Unite union are urging both governments to speed up the process to transform the site
Credit: PA
The contractors provide several critical support services between Grangemouth and Mossanman chemical factory in Cowdenbeath.
The Fife-based complex consists of two neighbouring plants: the Fife Natural Gas Liquids (FNGL) Plant operated by Shell U.K. Limited and the Fife Ethylene Plant (FEP) operated by ExxonMobil Chemical Limited.
Altrad blames the cuts on a work slowdown and ExxonMobil's cost-saving measures.
Union bosses are now warning of an 'avalanche' of redundancies, with up to 400 jobs disappearing every fortnight from the sector.
At least 98 jobs are already being slashed at Mossmorran, while other contractors Bilfinger, is dropping 10 roles, and Kaefer is cutting 55.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham slammed the UK and Scottish governments for failing to protect workers, saying: 'This is an unfolding jobs crisis in Scotland's oil and gas industry.
'They're accelerating huge losses without any credible jobs plan in place.'
A damning report from Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen has revealed the workforce could shrink by 400 jobs every fortnight for the next five years.
The UK's oil and gas workforce is estimated to have declined by around 5,000 jobs, from 120,000 in 2023 to around 115,000 in 2024.
It said in 'low-case scenarios', where the UK makes 'slower progress' as the country transitions towards renewable energy, jobs in the oil and gas workforce would further drop from 115,000 at present to 'as low as 57,000 by the early 2030s'.
Grangemouth was doomed from the moment closure was raised, admits Scotland Secretary
An impact assessment by PWC found that the Grangemouth refinery made an economic contribution of £403.6m per annum, and almost 3,000 workers were reliant on the refinery's operations.
Earlier this year, ministers floated nine options for Grangemouth's future, but warned it would take £35 billion of private investment to turn it into a green energy hub.
The Project Willow document says SAF operations would commence in 2035, with a capital expenditure of up to £2.1 billion required. Up to 270 staff would run the plant.
Unite wants the government to fast-track projects like transforming Grangemouth into a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production hub, but says the lack of action is causing a 'domino effect' of job losses across the supply chain.
Unite's Scottish secretary Derek Thomson said: 'Scotland is in serious danger of losing thousands of highly skilled jobs while creating no new opportunities in greener industries for workers to transition into.'
A UK Government spokesperson said: 'We have taken rapid steps to deliver the next generation of good jobs for North Sea workers in a fair and orderly transition as part of our Plan for Change, including by making the biggest investment in offshore wind and two first-of-a-kind carbon capture storage clusters.
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Over 140 contractors are set to lose their jobs by the end of the month
Credit: Alamy
'This comes alongside Great British Energy, headquartered in Aberdeen, which has already announced a £300 million investment into British supply chains, unlocking significant investment and helping to create thousands of skilled jobs.'
A spokesman for the refinery's owners Petroineos previously said: 'The publication of the first Project Willow report is a milestone event for Grangemouth that could mark the beginning of a transformation for the whole cluster and, in time, create many more jobs and growth opportunities across a variety of related industries in Scotland.'
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