Fife councillors kick-start decommissioning review of Mossmorran

The local authority has written to the Scottish Government asking it to lead the study.

Its letter has landed on the desk of Roseanna Cunningham, Cabinet Secretary for environment, climate change and land reform,.

The move comes just weeks after councillors voted for an independent inquiry which could, ultimately, lead to the decommissioning of a plant which employs over 250 people and is a major contributor to the Fife economy.

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Fife Ethelyne Plant (FEP) has been under increasing pressure after unscheduled flaring caused a huge community backlash.

A six-day flaring over the Easter Bank Holiday sparked an unprecedented 900 calls to the pollution hotline run by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA).

A further incident came last Friday when a mechanical issue caused elevated flaring for a number of hours.

Exxon Mobil has come in for sharp criticism over its communications to the community, and it has come under the intense scrutiny of Mossmorran Action group (MAG) which recently hosted a very vocal public meeting which the company opted not to attend.

In May, councillors voted to call for an independent inquiry which could lead to the plant’s ultimate decommissioning.

Councillor David Ross, co-leader, described the Easter flaring as “A tipping point” adding: We have seen some improvements,but we need to see firm action now.

“We should also start to look at decommissioning. No one is suggesting that this happens overnight or even in the near or medium future – but given the impact, we need to be able to give our communities some light at the end of the tunnel.”

The Press understands the matter was discussed at a meeting of elected members – including MPs and MSPs from Fife – on Friday.

We further understand Exxon has committed to staying in Fife beyond 2035 and is in talks with both the Scottish and UK governments.

More immediately, it faces further monitoring from SEPA, and has to produce a plan of action by June 28.

Fife Council also confirmed the move to launch the review process.

Nigel Kerr, chief officer, protective services, said: “Fife Council can confirm that a letter has been sent to Roseanna Cunningham, Cabinet Secretary for environment, climate change and land reform, by the co-leaders to request the Scottish Government to lead on an independent study into the impacts of Mossmorran.

“This references the need, in the longer term, to look at future opportunities as Scotland transitions to a new lower carbon economy.”