BP To Close Wilton Polyethylene Plant
BP announced today that it will close its low density polyethylene (LDPE) manufacturing operations at Wilton on Teesside. The company cited difficult market conditions as the reason for closing the 100,000 tonne per year plant.
“It is with deep regret that, despite the efforts of everyone at the site and the number of changes embraced in recent years, we have had to make today’s announcement,” said Donald Austin, BP Wilton site manager.
“In a highly competitive market, it has been increasingly difficult to maintain profitability at the plant. The plant’s age and related high costs of production and maintenance combined with competition from newer, larger plants have made Wilton unprofitable and led to this decision.”
The plant will cease production at the beginning of October. Decommissioning is expected to continue until the end of the year, and the plant will be dismantled and land cleared during 2002.
Consultations will take place immediately with the 81 BP employees who work at the plant regarding their future and BP commits to ensuring that every effort is made to relocate those with the appropriate skills to other BP locations, or provide re-training, job search assistance and BP’s severance package.
BP intends to continue servicing its customers with a range of tubular LDPE products supplied under third party agreements, in addition to its new C6 linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) grades made at its Grangemouth, Scotland plant and C4 LLDPE and autoclave LDPE from the company’s Erdoelchemie plant in Dormagen, Germany. BP also intends to continue supplying its Masterbatch grades.
The Wilton plant, built in 1973, uses high-pressure autoclave technology to manufacture low-density polyethylene for use by customers in a wide range of products such as film applications. BP acquired the plant from ICI in 1982.
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