Major British Chemical Plant Faces Closure as Energy Prices Soar

One of Britain’s biggest chemical plants is at risk of closure after the site’s Saudi owners paused a multimillion-pound upgrade project, citing high energy prices and a lack of Government concern for the crisis-hit sector. The Telegraph has the story.

The Olefins 6 ‘cracker’ facility in Teesside, controlled by Sabic, employs hundreds of workers and had been undergoing a major conversion to run on gas feedstock.

But Sabic paused that work months ago and is now understood to be on the verge of announcing the plant’s closure amid spiralling costs and concerns about high energy prices.

The company, which is owned by Saudi state oil giant Aramco, has not responded to a request for comment.

However, bosses recently said they were looking to scale back their European presence or exit the region entirely. Another cracker in the Netherlands was shuttered last year.

The closure of one of the UK’s most significant chemical plants would deal a fresh blow to the Government as it prepares to unveil its industrial strategy.

Earlier this year, chemical company bosses warned Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, to expect mounting closures as the industry reached “breaking point”.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, one of Britain’s richest men, has also warned the UK’s multibillion-pound chemicals industry faces “extinction” because of soaring energy costs and the shift to Net Zero.

Sources close to Sabic suggested the plant’s closure was partly due to Britain’s high energy prices as well as the perceived lack of interest shown by the Government in the crisis-hit sector.

Worth reading in full.