In the absence of any serious buyer interest, Coryton’s fate now looks sealed. DECC is, however, keeping in ‘close contact’ with PwC, as the refinery’s administrators look at further options for its future. 100 possible investors and purchasers
“We’ve had contact with over 100 possible investors and purchasers,” said Steven Pearson, joint administrator and partner with PwC.
“We’ve been unable to reach a deal to date. Prospective investors in the refinery faced a significant capital expenditure need, as well as a fragile market for refined oil products.”
“I would like to thank the management, the employees, contractors, customers and suppliers for their support and solidarity during the past four months. Any closure process is likely to take up to three months, during which time discussions regarding a possible sale will continue.”
For investors such as Gary Klesch and Igor Yusufov – both reputedly had an interest in Coryton – USA refineries with their cheaper feedstock, may be a much more attractive proposition. Earlier this month, refining margins in the US were reportedly averaging $18.32 per barrel against $6.45 in Europe.Calls for a level playing field
Petroplus bought Coryton in 2007 for $1.4 billion; the facility produced around 10% of the UK fuels products.
Saddened by the fact that the refinery looks “destined to cease refining operations shortly”, UKPIA said: “Our thoughts are with the staff and contractors, many of whom have been employed at the site for several years, if not decades.”
Speaking at the Platts Annual European Oil Storage Conference held in Amsterdam earlier this month, UKPIA’s director general, Chris Hunt said: “If the governments of Member States are sincere in wanting a robust European refining industry that continues to deliver quality employment, energy supply resilience and feedstocks for chemical, bitumen and other key industries, they must be proactive in developing policy that creates a level playing field for this vital energy sector against its global competitors.”https://fuelondev.wpengine.com/2012/06/possible-buyer-for-coryton-says-unite/
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The UK’s sensitivity to oil and gas price shocks could be reduced by using low-carbon forms of electricity generation, claims energy secretary, Edward Davey.
By 2050, the negative impact that global price spikes have on the UK could be reduced by more than 50%, as a result of climate change policies says an Oxford Economics report which was commissioned by the government.
“Every step the UK takes towards building a low-carbon economy reduces our dependency on fossil fuels, and on volatile global energy prices,” added Davey. “Only last year, the impact of the Arab Spring on wholesale gas prices, pushed up UK household bills by 20%.
“The more we can shift to alternative fuels, and use energy efficiently, the more we can ensure that our economy does not become hostage to far-flung events and to the volatility of market forces.”
The government report shows that energy prices have been steadily increasing over the past decade and are becoming more and more volatile. However, once the UK fully changes to a low-carbon economy, mitigating against the volatility of fossil fuel prices – predicted to be around 2050 – many of the negative impacts of energy price volatility will be halved, it says. www.oxfordeconomics.com
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Enabling the solar industry and householders to plan with confidence, DECC has introduced a range of changes to the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) scheme.
“UK solar continues to be an attractive proposition for many consumers considering microgeneration technologies,” said energy minister Greg Barker at last week’s announcement.
From August 1st, the tariff for a small domestic solar installation will be 16p per kilowatt hour, down from 21p, and will be set to decrease on a three month basis thereafter, with pauses if the market slows down. All tariffs will continue to be index-linked in line with the retail price index (RPI), and the export tariff will be increased from 3.2p to 4.5p. The new tariffs should give a return on investment of around 6% for most typical, well-sited installations.Government recognition
Alan Aldridge, chairman of the Solar Trade Association, commented: “This should reassure consumers and solar companies alike that the government recognises and stands behind a major role for the solar industry.”
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The Department for Transport and the Technology Strategy Board Industry have invested £9.5m to support the low carbon demonstration trial. Truck operators are being invited to bid for some of this funding, as part of a competition.
Transport minister, Mike Penning said: “These trials will show us how low-carbon technologies perform day-to-day in the real world, providing vital data to build operator confidence in these green trucks and allowing us to make policy choices based on hard evidence.”
Companies wishing to take advantage of the funding can bid for up to £750,000 by 20th June. To qualify, vehicles must deliver carbon savings of at least 15% compared with the equivalent conventional vehicle.
Trials will run for two years and any data collected will be used by the government to form policy on low-carbon road freight.www.dft.gov.uk
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Brake is working in association with energy supplement, Quick Energy, to encourage fleet operators to run a Wake Up For Work day in June.
A national insurance broker is warning fleet operators to protect their vehicles and take extra precautions as the theft of catalytic converters from vehicles increases.
According to latest figures, the practice, which involves removing the converter from the exhaust pipe to sell on to scrap metal dealers, has doubled from 1100 incidents to 2300 over a five-month period as the value of platinum, palladium and rhodium, from which the converters are made, increases.
Bluefin Insurance says that, not only can the cost of replacing the catalytic converter be high, but the damage caused to the vehicle can also be extensive. Businesses with fleets of trucks are particularly vulnerable because thieves can hit multiple vehicles in a single location.
“Prices for scrap metal have been on a general upward path since late 2008 which, along with the global economic recession, has revived criminal interest,” says the company. “It may only take a few seconds for the thief to remove the converter, but it can cause major disruptions to a business if several vehicles are targeted, costing a small fortune to repair, and halting operations for several days.
“Corporate fleets should take precautions to protect their vehicles, such as storing them in a locked building or yard where possible. Installing security lighting and cameras will also act as a deterrent to thieves.” Bluefin also suggests engraving the vehicle’s licence plate number on to the converter to make it traceable.
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The world’s largest oil trader, Vitol has teamed up with Marcel Van Poecke, co-founder of Petroplus, to buy the Cressier refinery in Switzerland.
Petroplus administrator, Wenger-Plattner reported last week that Varo Holding SA – the joint venture between Vitol and Van Poecke’s AtlasInvest – had agreed to buy the Cressier plant and will complete the transaction by the end of June. The move is seen as part of the Vitol’s drive to expand into physical assets.
The 68,000 barrel per day plant will resume activities after the handover is completed, added the administrator, dismissing the suggestion that the plant will be converted to storage.
A quality, niche refinery, storage assets and wholesale marketing opportunities
Vitol’s chief executive, Ian Taylor, said that the transaction provides the company with access to a “quality, niche refinery and a supply chain of storage assets and wholesale marketing opportunities.” He predicted that it would become a valuable source of growth for the Vitol Group.
Varo’s main rival for the Cressier plant was strongly rumoured to have been former Russian energy minister, Igor Yusufov, via his investment arm, Fund Energy.
Coryton
Marcel Van Poecke, who founded Petroplus in 1993, and oversaw its operations for 13 years, has also been involved in offering a temporary lifeline at Coryton. Fuel Oil News contacted PwC, administrators for Coryton yesterday and can report that there is no further comment at this time. Bids closed on 2nd April. Gary Klesch is rumoured to be among those interested.
Yesterday a crude oil tanker was heading for Coryton. Does this mark the end of the three month rescue deal or the start of a new one?
Antwerp
Swiss-based trader Gunvor has completed the acquisition of Petroplus’ Antwerp plant in Belgium which will restart in the next few days after a four-month outage
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Mark Gruendemann of Johnston Oils was the lucky winner of the Mabanaft prize draw held at FPS EXPO, and is now the proud owner of a state-of-the-art Blackberry smartphone, simply by responding to a survey.
Mabanaft ran the survey to gain a deeper appreciation of what fuel buyers want from their wholesaler, and to discover what aspects of their relationship with Mabanaft they particularly value.
Initial results indicate that Mabanaft achieves consistently high scores for continuity of supply, pricing, customer service, efficiency of loading times and advice and expertise.
The survey will now be extended to give more customers the opportunity to take part. They will be invited by email to complete an online feedback questionnaire, and their details will also be entered into a second prize draw.
With a network of independently operated fuel terminals throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, Mabanaft is one of the UK’s largest independent wholesalers and has been supplying the market for more than 40 years.www.mabanaft.com
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The UK’s largest used cooking oil biodiesel plant was opened on Merseyside last week by renewable energy and recycling specialist, Agri. Transport minister, Norman Baker, was a special guest at the launch.
The multi-million pound processing plant in Bootle will be solely dedicated to producing biodiesel from used cooking oil, and will complement Agri’s existing national used cooking oil collection business.
Norman Baker told guests: “The investment made by Agri, and projects like this, can help the UK meet its ambitious carbon reduction targets while creating green jobs to rebuild the economy.“Biodiesel produced from used cooking oil can be one of the most sustainable biofuels”
“Sustainable biofuels have an important role to play in our efforts to tackle climate change, particularly where there is no viable alternative fuel identified. Biodiesel produced from used cooking oil can be one of the most sustainable biofuels.”
Agri’s purpose-built plant features technology that enables it to produce 16 million litres of EN14214 biodiesel per year.
Plant manager, Eddie O’Reilly, said: “By using ISO 14064 methods, we can measure the carbon footprint of our biodiesel to show at least 90% less greenhouse gas emissions when compared to regular mineral diesel. This makes it the most sustainable type of biodiesel in the world.” www.agrienergy.co.uk
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Despite the unpredictable spring weather, we’re coming up to agricultural and county show season when thousands of visitors flock to their local show grounds to learn more about country life.
