Britons asked not to hoard fuel

The British government Saturday urged drivers not to hoard gasoline, saying there is plenty to go around despite a looming strike at a Scottish oil refinery that is raising fears of rationing.

The 48-hour strike over pension issues, set to begin today at the Grangemouth refinery in central Scotland, is expected to disrupt energy supplies and hinder delivery of Britain’s North Sea oil.

There is plenty of gasoline and diesel in Scotland to meet demand, Business Secretary John Hutton told the British Broadcasting Corp.

“But of course there is going to be a challenge if people change the way that they consume fuel,” he said.

Gas stations in and around Edinburgh were limiting gasoline purchases to $40 per visit Saturday, and lines of cars formed beside some pumps. Some stations had run out of gas and diesel by midmorning; others raised prices.

The government wants to avoid a repeat of scenes in 2000 when motorists lined up at stations as truckers angry about heavily taxed fuel brought Britain to a standstill by blockading refineries.

Refinery owner Ineos shut down production at Grangemouth on Friday.

Oil producer BP said it would shut its Forties Pipeline System, which delivers almost a third of Britain’s North Sea oil production and is powered by electricity and steam from Grangemouth, by early today.

The government says the strike could force more than 70 platforms in the North Sea to halt production, at a cost of $99 million a day.