Oil company BP was slated to resume production at its European facility in the Netherlands following a technical setback last week, but it appears that unionized workers are not willing to resolve the issue.
Employees at BP’s Rotterdam refinery are not cooperating with restarting production, after their Dutch unions initiated a work-to-rule action. Parts of the Dutch refinery, which is one of BP’s largest in Europe, have been subject to scheduled maintenance since September, with plans to resume fuels production at the beginning of this week. Simultaneously, unions representing BP’s workers started a pay dispute with the company, giving a deadline of November 23 to resolve the strife.
However, the Rotterdam refinery was hit with an unexpected outage last week related to its steam supply— which is vital in the plant’s operation, bringing production a complete halt. According to a union spokesperson cited by Bloomberg, employees started work-to-rule action, but ended up scrapping the plan following the mishap, and are not cooperating in restarting output until the steam supply issue is resolved.
The Rotterdam refinery is situated in the centre of the oil trading hub in the region, and is closely monitored following numerous strike actions across France that ultimately caused tightening in Europe’s diesel market.
Information for this briefing was found via Bloomberg and the sources mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
