Grangemouth oil refinery to shut by 2025; UK government ‘minded to intervene’ over Telegraph sale – business live

Scotland’s sole oil refinery at Grangemouth is due to cease operations in 2025, its owners have announced, a move which could cost hundreds of jobs.

Petroineos, which owns the plant, said it will become a fuel import terminal, a move that will cut the UK’s oil refining capacity.

Grangemouth has a refining capacity of 150,000 barrels per day, and is responsible for 4% of Scotland’s GDP and approximately 8% of its manufacturing base, according to Petroineos.

The company said in a statement:

“The timescale for any operational change has not yet been determined but the work will take around 18 months to complete and the refinery is therefore expected to continue operating until spring 2025.”

The Unite union has pledged to “leave no stone unturned” in its fight to save jobs at Grangemouth.

Unite’s Scottish secretary Derek Thomson told STV News.

“The news will come as a shock to the local community but Unite is going to do everything it can to protect jobs in this vital industry.

Franck Demay, the chief executive of Petroineos Refining, said the Grangemouth announcement does not change anything at the refinery currently, adding:

“As the energy transition gathers pace, this is a necessary step in adapting our business to reflect the decline in demand for the type of fuels we produce.

“As a prudent operator, we must plan accordingly but the precise timeline for implementing any change has yet to be determined.

“This is the start of a journey to transform our operation from one that manufactures fuel products, into a business that imports finished fuel products for onward distribution to customers.

“Throughout this process, our focus will remain on the safe production and reliable supply of high-quality fuels to our customers in Scotland, the north of England, and Northern Ireland.

“As we start to make this investment in preparing for a future transformation, we are equally committed to a regular programme of engagement with our colleagues about the changes we are making to our business.”

Newsflash: UK factory order books have fallen to their lowest level since January 2021, the latest industrial trends survey from the CBI shows.

The CBI’s monthly poll of the manufacturing sector found that total order books “deteriorated sharply” this month, to well below the long-run average.

It also found that output fell in the last three months, and is likely to keep declining in the next quarter.

Anna Leach, CBI deputy chief economist, says the survey suggests increases in interest rates are hurting demand for goods.

Leach explains:

“Manufacturing output has been under pressure recently given the combination of slowing demand and the run-down of stocks of finished goods. This latest data will fuel concerns that the economy is slowing swiftly as the highest interest rates for 15 years take their toll on demand.

“The further softening in orders this month is a worry, with order books now in their weakest position since the start of 2021 when the economy was locked down amid the pandemic”.

Here’s our news story on the latest development in the Telegraph sale drama:

UK media minister Lucy Frazer has said she is “minded to” issue a public interest intervention notice relating to the sale of the owner of the Telegraph group to a fund backed by Abu Dhabi.

In a statement to parliament, Frazer says her department has today written respectively to Lloyds Banking Group, the Barclay family and RedBird IMI, to inform them that she is ‘minded to’ issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice.

Frazer says:

This relates to concerns I have that there may be public interest considerations – as set out in section 58 of the Enterprise Act 2002 – that are relevant to the intended loan repayment by the Barclay family and the planned acquisition of Telegraph Media Group by RedBird IMI and that these concerns warrant further investigation.

Frazer’s statement come after a group of Conservative MPs wrote to ministers, urging them to use the UK’s national security laws to investigate the Barclay family’s attempt to regain control of the Telegraph newspaper group with funding from Abu Dhabi.

Earlier this week, RedBird announced it had pledged to repay £1.1bn debts owed by their publishing group’s previous owners, the Barclay family, as part of a deal that would see it take control of the Telegraph and Spectator.

The sale of the Telegraph and Spectator was put on hold yesterday, until after a deadline for the Barclays to repay the debts at the start of December.

The European Central Bank has warned that higher interest rates and slower growth are posing problems for people, firms and governments in the euro area.

In its latest Financial Stability Review, published this morning, the ECB warns that the full impact of tighter financial conditions on real economy have yet to be felt.

The ECB, which raised its key deposit rate to an all-time high in September, fears that higher borrowing and debt service costs will “increasingly test” the resilience of euro area households, firms and governments.

The FSR points out that a downturn is also underway in the eurozone real estate markets, where residential prices are falling as higher mortgage costs hit affordability.

It also warns that eurozone banks are facing pressures from higher funding costs, worsening asset quality and lower lending volumes.

ECB vice-president Luis de Guindos says:

“The weak economic outlook along with the consequences of high inflation are straining the ability of people, firms and governments to service their debt.

“It is critical that we remain vigilant as the economy transitions to an environment of higher interest rates coupled with growing uncertainties and geopolitical tensions.”

Greg Brockman, freshly returned to OpenAI alongside Sam Altman, has posted a photo of himself with staff at the company – with smiles all round.

In the commodities market, wheat has risen to a two-week high amid new concerns over disruption to UK supplies.

The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade climbed over 1% as high as $5.88-3/4 a bushel, the highest since November 9th.

Yesterday, Ukraine reported that a Russian strike had hit port infrastructure in Odesa Oblast.

Earlier this week, the United Nations World Food Programme warned that Ukraine’s wheat production may be unable to meet domestic and export demand in the years to come if Black Sea export routes remain blocked and attacks on food infrastructure continue.