Mossmorran flaring: Plant set for restart after 'process upset'

Mossmorran has begun belching out a large flare this afternoon, which is visible for miles across Fife and the Lothians.

By Scott McCartney

Published 3rd Mar 2020, 16:01 BST

Updated 3rd Mar 2020, 20:51 BST

Mossmorran has been flaring this afternoon.

Bosses at the Fife Ethylene Plant, which is located near Cowdenbeath and Lochgelly, mentioned a “process upset” in a tweet put out earlier.

It comes after the plant was restarted just two weeks ago, following months of shutdown for upgrades which cost £140m.

Operator ExxonMobil said: “We have, unfortunately, experienced a trip on one of our major compressors.

“Our team is currently undertaking the necessary checks to begin a safe re-start.

“In order to keep the rest of the plant running and reduce total duration of flaring, we need to manage this process through our elevated flare. We are also working with our neighbours Shell to maximise ground flare capacity.

“The use of the flare is completely safe, and we will continue to keep you updated as we work our way through this process.

“We apologise for any inconvenience to our local communities.”