An American oil company will acquire the assets of an English oil refinery but will not restart processing.
Instead, Texas-based Phillips 66 will integrate the storage and other assets of the Prax Lindsey facility in Lincolnshire into its neighbouring operations.
The move comes six months after Lindsey collapsed into government-managed administration and follows a sales process conducted by FTI Consulting.
The Prax refinery was created by husband-and-wife entrepreneurs Winston and Arani Soosaipillai through a number of acquisitions starting in the early 2000s. It culminated in the purchase of the Lindsey oil refinery from Total Energies, the French oil group, for $167 million in 2021.
However, difficulties arose from mounting losses. Glencore, a supplier to the site, issued a termination notice on the refinery to call in debt of $53.6 million after it learnt of the financial difficulties at State Oil, the refinery’s parent company.
After the site was closed the Official Receiver took over and the Soosaipillais are now being sued by State Oil’s creditors for an alleged breach of fiduciary duties.
Michael Shanks, the energy minister, said the deal “marks the next step in securing an industrial future for the Lindsey site” and that Phillips 66 had emerged as “the most credible bidder which can provide a viable future for this site”.
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