Refinery Strike Threatens to Half UK Oil Output

A pending strike at a major Scottish refinery would force the closure of a key North Sea pipeline and cut Britain’s crude oil output in half, according to a report by Reuters (www.reuters.com).

The report says talks to resolve the dispute at the 200,000 barrel-a-day Grangemouth refinery have collapsed, as workers and union officials continue to push for pension assurances. The refinery has been shutting down gradually during the course of the week, with the heat and power station on sited scheduled to shut down on Saturday. At that point, the Forties pipeline will be forced to close due to a loss of power at its crude processing facility.

The Forties pipeline produces approximately 700,000 barrels a day.

To read the full Reuters report on this story, click here.