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“This is not a reversible decision due to the fundamentals that were analyzed and valued by the Board of Directors. The decision has been taken and closed,” engineer José Silva said today at the Matosinhos Chamber of Commerce meeting.
The head of the Galp de Matosinhos refinery defended that the company’s decision “does not harm the national interest” and that it will continue to guarantee the availability of the products it sells to its customers.
In response to questions from councilors, José Silva said “there is no lithium refining project” for the industrial complex.
“I would like to make a very synthetic and clear statement: there is no lithium refining project for Matosinhos, what exists is a study of the value chain of batteries because the storage of batteries is in Galp’s DNA”, said.
As for the workers, the official said Galp has maintained “a close dialogue with the representative structures of the workers,” adding that two meetings were held, one on December 21 (when the closure was announced) and another today.
José Silva guaranteed that the company “will seek to find solutions for all people” and that “an assessment will be made of each worker”, and these solutions “presuppose that many can be relocated to other functions or locations, but also have their skills trained” . competencies to face other challenges “.
The official also stressed that the closure of the refinery is based on a decommissioning project that “will last between three and five years” and will require labor.
The energy transition, changes in consumption patterns and investments in refining were some of the main factors and challenges for the future that, according to José Silva, impacted on the “complex and difficult decision” to close the refinery.
On December 21, Galp announced, in a statement sent to the Securities Market Commission (CMVM), that “it will continue to supply the regional market by maintaining the operation of the main import, storage and shipping facilities for existing products in Matosinhos”, and that it is “developing suitable solutions for the necessary staff reduction and evaluating alternative uses for the complex.”
The company stated that “structural changes in the consumption patterns of petroleum products motivated by the regulatory context and the context of covid-19 had a significant impact on Galp’s industrial downstreaming activities”, and said that “the supply and distribution of Fuels in the country will not be affected by this decision. “
This reconfiguration “will allow a reduction of more than 90 million euros per year in fixed costs and investments and c.900kt of CO2 emissions (scope 1 and 2) associated with the current system”, says the note.
This decision has already provoked several reactions with the Government, considering that Galp’s decision “raises concerns” in relation to the fate of the workers, but recalls that the announced measures are part of a process aimed at decarbonizing the energy sector.
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