Pension reform: France’s largest oil refinery in Gonfreville-l’Orche shut down

See the lack of fuel? In any case, this is a project of the CGT in the conflict over pension reform, which is solidifying. The shutdown of facilities at the TotalEnergies refinery in Normandy “began on Friday night,” Alexis Antonioli, general secretary of the country’s largest refinery, CGT, told AFP on Saturday. “The units have been suspended since last night,” he added. However, this shutdown will take several days and should not cause immediate fuel shortages at gas stations across the country.

The cessation of shipments by the strikers leads to a “de facto shutdown of installations,” continued Mr. Antonioli, “stocks are already full” at the refinery site. “Since Thursday afternoon, the strikers” present at the refinery to ensure its safety “refused to continue deliveries” but “management, unwilling to shut down the refinery, decided not to provide further assistance.”

“After 22 or even 33 hours of presence of some employees, the management on Friday gave in to receive new commands,” giving instructions to stop, still, according to Mr. Antonioli. “Shipments are blocked on the processing side, which is causing other work at so many production facilities,” said group management, joined by AFP. “Our priority is maintaining safety, which results in us putting certain units into preferred recycling or shutting down some if necessary to ensure inventory management,” the management added, arguing that “other units on the platform continue to operate normally.” regime and ensure their production.

Off until Monday

This could not last long, according to Eric Sellini, the group’s CGT union coordinator, who elaborates that “operations (shutdowns) are planned until Monday evening.” He assured AFP that “nothing else is coming out of the refinery.”

The closure of the Normandy refinery could be the first in a series, he said: in addition to the PétroIneos refinery in Lavere (Bouches-du-Rhone), whose CGT reported on Friday that its shipments had been halted and predicted a closure on Monday afternoon. “at the latest” Esso-ExxonMobil’s Port-Jérôme-Gravenchon (Seine-Maritime) refinery could be closed on Monday or Tuesday due to a lack of crude oil to process due to a strike at the Le Havre oil depot. Esso-ExxonMobil management contacted by AFP could not be contacted.