Petroleum refining in the United Kingdom produced around 51.45 million tonnes of petroleum products in 2023, down 16% from 2015 and 32% from 2011.[1] There are six major and one minor petroleum refinery in the downstream sector of the UK oil industry.[2]
Total, operational refining capacity 1,222,800 barrels per day, around 58 million tonnes per year.
In 1902, there were four petroleum refineries in London that held a license to import oil in barges along the River Thames,[12] including S. Bowley and Son. There was small-scale oil refining along the Lower Thames estuary in 1914.[13] Refining capacity increased during the inter-war period. By 1938 there were 11 oil refineries in the UK.[14]
| Esso Petroleum Co Ltd | Fawley, Hampshire | 1921 | 700,000 | |
| Shell | Stanlow, Cheshire | 1924 | 750,000 | |
| Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Co/ Shell UK Ltd | Shell Haven, Essex | 1916 | 800,000 | |
| London and Thames Haven Oil Wharves Ltd | Shell Haven, Essex | 1921 | 400,000 | |
| Cory Brothers Ltd | Coryton, Essex | 1921 | 250,000 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Ardrossan, South Ayrshire | 1928 | 225,000 | |
| Anglo-Iranian Oil Co | Llandarcy, Neath Port Talbot | 1921 | 360,000 | |
| Anglo-Iranian Oil Co | Grangemouth, Falkirk | 1924 | 360,000 | |
| Berry Wiggins & Co Ltd | Kingsnorth, Kent | 1930 | 70,000 | |
| Burmah Oil Trading Ltd | Ellesmere Port, Cheshire | 1934 | 100,000 | |
| William Briggs & Sons Ltd | Dundee | 1935 | 35,000 |
In the post-Second World War period several of the existing refineries were expanded and 3 new major oil refineries were built.
| Shell UK Ltd | Heysham, Lancashire | 1948 | 1,800,000 | |
| BP Refinery Ltd | Isle of Grain, Kent | 1953 | 4,600,000 | |
| Vacuum oil Co/Mobil Oil Co Ltd | Coryton, Essex | 1953 | 1,000,000 |
| Shell Haven | 1,000 | Shell | 8,900 | Shell Haven, Thames Estuary | 80 | |
| Coryton | 300 | Mobil | 2,400 | Coryton, Thames Estuary | 53 | |
| Isle of Gain / BP Kent | 1,300 | BP | 9,500 | Isle of Grain, Medway | 50 | |
| Kingsnorth | – | Berry Wiggins | 195 | Medway | ||
| Fawley | 1,000 | Esso | 11,500 | Southampton Water | 100 | |
| Llandarcy | 900 | BP | 5,500 | Angle Bay | 100 | |
| Milford Haven | – | Esso | 4,800 | Swansea | 20 | |
| Stanlow | 2,000 | Shell | 10,400 | Milford Haven | 100 | |
| Ellesmere Port | 100 | Lobitos | 400 | Stanlow, Manchester Ship Canal | 15 | |
| Heysham | 124 | Shell | 2,000 | Heysham | 22 | |
| Ardrossan | 30 | Shell | 180 | Ardrossan | 14 | |
| Dundee | – | William Briggs | 60 | Dundee | 15 | |
| Grangemouth | 400 | BP | 3,250 | Finnart, Loch Long Grangemouth, Forth | 100 16 | |
| Pumpherston | – | BP | 180 | None | ||
| New refineries under construction or planned | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Tees | – | ICI | 146 | Tees | – | |
| Milford Haven | 924 | Regent | 5,000 | Milford Haven | 100 | |
| Teesport | 300 | Shell | 4,000 | Tees | 63 | |
| Esso Petroleum Co Ltd | Fawley refinery, Hampshire | 1921 | 19,500 | |
| Esso Petroleum Co Ltd | Milford Haven refinery, Pembrokeshire | 1960 | 6,300 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Stanlow refinery, Cheshire | 1924 | 10,750 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Shell Haven refinery, Essex | 1916 | 10,000 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Teesport refinery, Teesside | 1968 | 6,000 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Heysham refinery, Lancashire | 1948 | 2,200 | |
| Shell UK Ltd | Ardrossan refinery, South Ayrshire | 1928 | 200 | |
| BP Refinery Ltd | Isle of Grain refinery, Kent | 1953 | 10,900 | |
| BP Refinery Ltd | Llandarcy refinery, Neath Port Talbot | 1921 | 8,300 | |
| BP Refinery Ltd | Grangemouth refinery, Falkirk | 1924 | 8,800 | |
| BP Refinery Ltd | Belfast refinery | 1964 | 1,500 | |
| Mobil Oil Co Ltd | Coryton refinery, Essex | 1953 | 7,000 | |
| Lindsey Oil Refinery Ltd | Killingholme, North Lincolnshire | 1969 | 8,400 | |
| Texaco Refining Co Ltd | Pembroke refinery, Pembrokeshire | 1964 | 7,000 | |
| Phillips-Imperial Petroleum Ltd | Billingham refinery, Teesside | 1963 | 5,000 | |
| Amoco | Milford Haven refinery, Pembrokeshire | 1973 | 4,000 | |
| Conoco Ltd | South Killingholme refinery, Lincolnshire | 1969 | 4,000 | |
| Gulf Oil Refining Ltd | Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire | 1968 | 5,000 | |
| Philmac Oils Ltd | Eastham refinery, Cheshire | 1966 | 400 | |
| Berry Wiggins & Co Ltd | Kingsnorth refinery, Kent | 1930 | 285 | |
| Burmah Oil Trading Ltd | Ellesmere Port refinery, Cheshire | 1934 | 1,500 | |
| William Briggs & Sons Ltd | Dundee refinery | 1935 | 85 | |
| Carless | Harwich refinery, Essex | 1964 |
| ENI/Murco | Canvey Island, Essex[17] | 4,000 | 1977 | |
| Occidental | Canvey Island, Essex | 6,000 | Mid 1975 | |
| Burmah-Total | Cliffe, Kent | 12,000 | No date | |
| Chevron | Hunterston, Scotland | 7,000 | No date | |
| ORSI | Hunterston, Scotland | 24,000 | No date | |
| Berry Wiggins | Kingsnorth, Kent | 5,000 | 1978 | |
| Amoco | Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire | 4,000 | Late 1973 | |
| National Bulk Carriers | Nigg Bay, Cromarty Firth | Not known | No date | |
| Milford Argosy | Shetland Islands | 15,000 | No date |
Further oil company re-organisations and take-overs, and reductions in demand, led to further refinery closures. By 2019 there were 6 major and one smaller oil refineries in the UK.
Statistics for petroleum refining in the UK are gathered by the United Kingdom Petroleum Industry Association (UKPIA), on Chancery Lane in London, and the recently formed (July 2016) Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
The Institute of Petroleum merged with the Institute of Energy to form the Energy Institute in 2003.[19] The modern-day institute is headquartered in Marylebone, London. Also nearby is the World Petroleum Council (WPC), known for its four-yearly World Petroleum Congresses.