The leading trade body for the offshore energy industry, OEUK, has responded to news that an industrial plant in Fife is set to close.
The Fife Ethylene Plant at Mossmorran, owned by ExxonMobil, will shut down in February.
OEUK chief executive David Whitehouse said: “This is deeply sad news and yet another troubling sign of the wider industrial decline we are witnessing across the UK.
“We are sleepwalking into full-scale de-industrialisation; this announcement comes on the heels of widespread job losses in our domestic oil and gas sector.
“But it does not have to be this way. We should be building modern industrial Britain on the shoulders of our proud industries.
“The Chancellor needs to act on November 26 to support our oil and gas sector by replacing the Energy Profits Levy in 2026 with a permanent, profits-based mechanism.
“Get this right and our industry will add £137 billion to the UK economy by 2050, bring forward over £50 billion of new projects, pay more tax – not less, and safeguard 160,000 jobs across the country.”