The government has said that the closure of Petroplus’ Coryton refinery in Essex will not have any impact on fuel supply.

A spokesperson at the Department of Energy and Climate Change said: “Continuing jetty operations at Coryton means that there should be no loss of supply through the terminal to London and the South East.

“Closure of the refinery reflects overcapacity in the European refining sector and a number of refineries have closed across Europe in recent years.”

The government it would continue to keep in close contact with the administrators PriceWaterhouseCoopers, who are looking at further options for the future of the facility.

“It is disappointing that PWC has been unable to find a buyer for Coryton,” added the spokesperson. “This is particularly bad news for the workers at Coryton.

“The Job Centre Plus Rapid Response Service is available to support individual employees to re-enter the job market. Coryton’s workforce is highly skilled and well-positioned to take advantage of new opportunities.”

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