Zarah ChoudharyUnite has demanded the UK Government “pull out all the stops” to support the Grangemouth refinery workforce and start producing sustainable air fuel (SAF) on site, following extra investment announced by First Minister John Swinney MSP in Parliament on 18th February 2025.
Swinney said the Scottish Government would allocate an additional £25m to establish a Grangemouth Just Transition Fund.
The Scottish Government said it would take its financial commitment to £87m in total towards the Grangemouth industrial cluster.
Under the plans by Petroineos to close the refinery and establish an import terminal, the majority of the workers are set to leave Grangemouth, with job losses set to take effect in between three and 18 months.
Sharon Graham, general secretary at Unite, said: “The extra money from the Scottish Government is welcome but workers in Grangemouth have already been let down and we will need more that this to fix the situation.
“Both the UK and Scottish governments must now pull out all the stops to ensure that we do not lose these refinery workers and their incredible skills.
“Unite has a clear plan for the site to produce sustainable air fuel (SAF) and these workers have the skills to do that.
“As we heard following the Heathrow announcement, the UK government needs UK SAF production to meet its own green energy targets.
“So, I hope this announcement is a signal that politicians are finally going to stop dancing around their handbags and do everything needed to ensure that Grangemouth starts delivering SAF as soon as possible.”
Unite has established a clear pathway for the future of Grangemouth in line with the Government’s own mandate to introduce the use of SAF.
The plan demonstrated how other refineries in the world have been quickly transitioned to produce SAF and biofuels.
This would begin with the co-production of SAF and petroleum, which will protect existing jobs and skills.
Rachel Reeves in her recent growth speech highlighted how the support for Heathrow’s expansion was directly linked to the introduction of SAF for UK flights.
However, this was not linked to a plan to transition Grangemouth to SAF production, and the Government will be unable to meet its own target of SAF production by 2030 without it.
The redundancies are only for directly employed Petroineos workers, amounting to 500 employees.
An impact assessment for PWC found that the refinery makes an economic contribution of £403.6m, with 2,800 workers.
Derek Thomson, Scottish secretary at Unite, said: “Unite welcomes all efforts to support the Grangemouth refinery workers including the extra investment announced by the first minister which we recognise as a step forward.
“We continue to press Government on the urgency of the situation facing the workers because not enough has been done to support them.
“Scotland is facing an economic earthquake if the refinery is allowed to close.
“We are facing an estimated shock to the economy of up to £4 billion over the next decade before any of the jobs at scale promised through Project Willow will see the light of day.
“Unite will continue to fight for the future of the refinery and the associated jobs.
“These Grangemouth refinery workers are critical to any just transition towards a green economy.”
Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray said: “This new urgency around Grangemouth is to be welcomed, and John Swinney’s announcement today is made possible by Labour’s austerity-ending
budget which delivered £4.9bn extra for the Scottish Budget.
“We will consider the announcement today in detail, and set out our own next steps in due course.
“When Labour came to office last year, there were no plans for Grangemouth.
“Within days the UK Labour Government approached the Scottish Government to put together a package of measures.
“This included £100m for the Falkirk and Grangemouth growth deal, which will deliver more than £628
million in economic benefits and create 1,660 jobs.
“The UK Labour Government is also putting £26m into the Forth Green Freeport, with Grangemouth at its heart, to attract investment and well paid, quality jobs to the area.
“Project Willow, a jointly funded study looking at a long-term sustainable future for the site, was commissioned within days of Labour taking office.
“It could have been commissioned months beforehand, but only got the green light after Labour won the election.
“At every step of the way it has been Labour that has driven a sense of urgency to Grangemouth.”
Workplace Journal has contacted Petroineos for comment.
