Bankrupt refiner Petroplus AG will have its assets liquidated following a French court ruling.
The Petit-Couronne refinery Image: Petroplus |
After months of negotiation, Libya's Murzuk Oil and Dubai-based NetOil (the only potential bidders for taking over the Petit-Couronne refinery were not considered financially strong enough to keep the project viable according to a regional court.
Requiring heavy investment, the refinery employs 470 workers and was one of a series of industrial plants French President Francois Hollande had promised to protect before being elected in May 2012.
A court-appointed receiver will now seek a buyer for the plant's assets and dismantle it if none is found.
Petroplus, a Swiss-based independent refiner, eventually struggled to operat in a market suffering from weak demand, overcapacity and cheap competition from Asia and the Middle East. The company had five refineries in Europe, but filed for protection from creditors in early 2012 after running out of cash on the first day of last year.