UK: Offer for PetroPlus Plant in Teeside Unconfirmed

At least one energy investment firm is believed to have tabled an offer for the North Tees refinery in England, which was put on the market earlier this year.

If a sale does not materialise the company is in on record as saying it will  turn the facility into a storage facility. Mark Lewis, energy sector advisor at the North East Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC) said PetroPlus was an important part of the integrated network infrastructure of processing at Wilton.

While its importance as a supplier to the site had diminished over the years, it remained a significant customer locally and played a major role as a fuel supplier nationally. One of the first companies to blend biofuels in the UK, its biofuel brand already meets the 5% target set by the UK government for oil companies to achieve by 2013.

Mr Lewis said the plant, which is more than 40 years old, would need investment. “It will need upgrades if it is going to remain competitive, particularly with environmental standards driving investment in refineries,” he added.

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