World News
Essar Group Seeks to Sell UK Refinery
India-based Essar Group (Essar) is putting a British oil refinery up for sale as part of a move to reduce its debts and focus on its core business in India, the Financial Times reports.
The company acquired the Stanlow refinery, located in Cheshre near Ellesmere Port, from Royal Dutch Shell (Shell) in 2011 for $350 million.
Essar may sell either a minority stake in the refinery or the entire facility, sources said.
"The truth is they should never have bought Stanlow, but Shell sold it on the cheap, and they only later found out it needed major investment," one anonymous source said.
"The problem is that it will be very hard to sell, given the state of the European refining sector, and if they sell it they'll have to do it at a low price."
A number of European refineries have closed or been sold in recent years, although some observers have said more shutdowns are needed to adjust to reduced demand for heavy fuel oil (HFO).
Key Bunker Prices More
| VLSFO | MGO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $/mt | +/- | $/mt | +/- | |
| Singapore | 649.00 | 0.50 | 775.00 | 3.50 |
| Rotterdam | 603.50 | 1.50 | 759.50 | 11.50 |
| Houston | 626.50 | 2.50 | 794.00 | 2.00 |
| Fujairah | 649.00 | 0.50 | 904.50 | 6.50 |
| Global 20 Ports Average | 664.00 | 2.00 | 855.00 | 0.00 |
| Global 4 Ports Average | 632.00 | 1.00 | 808.00 | 4.00 |
| Global Average Bunker Price | 716.50 | 1.00 | 901.00 | 12.50 |
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