AROUND 90% of workers at Grangemouth are set to be made redundant – with staff now beginning to find out if their role is being axed.
Trade union Unite said it was a “national disgrace” that hundreds of workers at Grangemouth were facing redundancy – and questioned a lack of “joined-up thinking” from the UK Government on the future of the site.
STV reported that around 65 staff out of 500 will be kept on as the Petroineos-owned site transitions into an import terminal.
Unite said the job losses are set to take effect in a time span of three to 18 months.
PA reported that only a small number of redundancies will be mandatory.
Sharon Graham, the trade union’s general secretary, said: “It is quite frankly a national disgrace that Petroineos has been allowed to press ahead with this needless act of industrial vandalism. There is a clear plan for the future of Grangemouth in place. Yet the UK and Scottish governments are missing in action.
“Just last week, the UK Government announced the expansion of Heathrow and said that sustainable air fuel (SAF) will be needed. Well, Grangemouth can produce SAF – where is the joined-up thinking?
“It is clear the company is acting in the national interest in China. Who is acting in Britain's interest – who has got Britain's back?”
Petroineos is a joint venture between the Chinese state-owned PetroChina and billionaire Jim Radcliffe’s company Ineos.
Graham said: “This is the moment for the Government to lead and stand up to Petroineos in the national interest. Petroineos must allow the transition to SAF and biofuels. If the company refuses, the government should be the investor of first resort. There will be 3500% increase in SAF demand. The market is there.
“Today's announcement will not deter us. We will fight for the future of the refinery and the associated jobs.''
Unite said that the redundancies being announced on Wednesday are only for directly employed Petroineos workers.
The union further pointed to an impact assessment for PWC which found that there are 2800 workers directly reliant on the refinery.
Unite Scottish secretary Derek Thomson said: “It is unsurprising that some workers want to leave as they have been facing years of uncertainty, with the threat of job losses hanging over them.
“These are incredibly skilled workers who are essential to the success of the Scottish economy and have the necessary skills to lead the just transition to a green economy. The workers and their skills must not be lost.”
Last week, a group of Scottish Labour MPs also called for Grangemouth to be turned into an SAF production facility.
Gillian Mackay, the Scottish Greens MSP for Central Scotland, grew up just 200 yards from the refinery.
She said: "This is a brutal blow for Scotland, but particularly for the community I grew up in and the workers who I know well. I know how hurt the community feels at this time; my thoughts are with everyone.
"All of us in the town know somebody who is employed directly or indirectly by the refinery. They’re the ones now suffering. Many people will be extremely worried and possibly angry about what will happen next. I am too, I feel the same."
Acting Alba leader Kenny MacAskill also hit out at the news of redundancies, saying: "This is a tragic day. It's a shameful event and one which we had hoped would never occur. This will be the beginning of the end unless something is done to preserve Scotland's industrial base.
"We have a UK Government who is intent on shutting down the North Sea and is now allowing Grangemouth refinery to close. The Scottish Government has been missing in action since the news of potential job losses broke in November 2023.
"It is utterly perverse that the UK Government are still investing hundreds of millions of tax payers money in a Petroineos plant in Belgium yet they can't find a penny to save Grangemouth refinery."
