SNP demand Grangemouth refinery nationalisation

The SNP have called for the government to consider nationalising the UKs only oil refinery in Grangemouth.

It comes after reports that PM Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves are considering nationalising British Steel to support the industry that is of “huge strategic importance” to the UK.

Last month a private report identified nine options that could save the site, suggesting that a switch to green energy production would be beneficial considering the site’s vast power demands.

The option outline in the Project Willow report included turning the site into a plastics recycling plant, use the refinery to create bio-ethanol or low-carbon aviation fuel or launch a hydrogen energy project to support the green energy transition.

The Grangemouth refinery was slated for closure by Petroineos due to not being able to compete against refineries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The government has previously rejected calls to nationalise the refinery, but the SNP’s Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has said that this should be rethought given the site’s strategic importance and the risks of economic uncertainty in the wake of Trump’s tariffs.

He said: “Grangemouth is our sole refinery and central to our energy security. If British Steel is considered viable for nationalisation as an industry of strategic national importance then our ability to sustain our energy demand surely is too. 

“The UK is isolated in a global economic storm and we need a re-think from the Labour Government in that context – energy security is a matter of national security and Grangemouth is central to that.

“Scotland’s vast energy wealth has a role to play in supporting our European partners as America becomes an increasingly unreliable ally and we should view all of our assets in those conditions, particularly as a global trade war rages. 

“The Labour Government keep telling us “the world has changed”, but it’s time they rose to that challenge, ditched the fiscal rules and invested in key strategic priorities including our energy sector – that brings security, it brings growth and it secures jobs.

“The future of Grangemouth is a litmus test for any government that reports to take our energy security seriously and has ambitions for sustainable growth – I urge the UK Labour Government to rise to that challenge.”