Reuters: Bankruptcy News: UPDATE 1-French ex-Petroplus refinery facing Tues bid deadline

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UPDATE 1-French ex-Petroplus refinery facing Tues bid deadline Feb 5th 2013, 09:57 Tue Feb 5, 2013 4:57am EST * Some 500 jobs at risk, test for French president * Industry minister says govt ready to take minority stake * Deadline for offers on Tuesday at 1600 GMT * Court decision not before Thursday By Michel Rose PARIS, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Potential bidders for the former Petroplus Petit-Couronne oil refinery have until Tuesday to submit offers to legal administrators and avert a liquidation which the French government has been hoping to prevent. Big oil firms have shown no interest in the Normandy-based refinery, France's oldest, as oil demand in Europe has dropped sharply and the industry struggles with overcapacity. The sole known firm bidder for the 161,000 barrels-per-day refinery is NetOil, led by Middle Eastern businessman Roger Tamraz. He submitted an improved offer after the commercial court in Rouen in northern France rejected its initial bid on financial and technical grounds last year. Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg said on Tuesday that France was ready to help in a potential takeover. "We are available to go along with a bidder, we said so to the ones which looked into the project," he told French radio RTL, adding that the state was ready to take a minority share. Montebourg sought to strike a deal with Libya's sovereign fund in November, but the Libyans said they had only sent a letter of intent. The minister insisted on Tuesday that the possibility of a Libyan involvement remained "serious". "Oil-producing countries have an interest in taking positions on the European market for when production picks up," he said. The government has also ruled out a possible offer by Iranian firm Tadbir Energy because of international sanctions on Iran. "The government did everything to rule out the Iranian offer, even though it wasn't in contravention of the embargo," union representative Yvon Scornet said in a statement. LIMITED CHANCES The Petit-Couronne unions met with government advisers on Monday evening to discuss offers on the table, but have warned of possible industrial action if the plant were to be liquidated. "If tomorrow a solution is not found, the workers of Petroplus will strike another tone," Scornet said. Montebourg said chances for a successful outcome were "limited but not impossible". The Rouen court is expected to rule on the suitability of potential bidders by Thursday at the earliest, after legal administrators submit any firm offers to the court. If none appear, the court could decide to liquidate the plant, which would lead to the loss of 500 jobs. Socialist President Francois Hollande has vowed to stem rising unemployment by the end of the year but has had to deal with a series of high-profile plant closures. His government faced sharp criticism over its mixed messages about a possible nationalisation during a two-month battle over the future of ArcelorMittal's Florange steel plant. Hollande has said the state could at some point provide financing for the Petroplus refinery, but would not take over the plant. A Petit-Couronne liquidation could also be a headache for former owner Shell, with unions saying the company should be asked to contribute to the cost of dismantling the facility and cleaning up the site. Shell, which opened the refinery in 1929, sold it to Swiss refiner Petroplus in April 2008. The firm filed for bankruptcy in January 2012. In December, Shell ended a six-month oil processing deal with the troubled plant and has not extended the contract, making the refinery less attractive for buyers due to expensive re-start costs. Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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