Fawley Refinery

Fawley Refinery is an oil refinery located at Fawley, Hampshire, England. The refinery is owned by Esso, which acquired the site in 1925. Situated on Southampton Water, it was rebuilt and extended in 1951 and is now the largest oil refinery in the United Kingdom, and one of the most complex refineries in Europe. With a capacity of 270,000 barrels a day, Fawley provides 20 percent of UK refinery capacity. An estimated 2,300 people are employed at the site.

History

The refinery was established in 1921 by the Atlantic, Gulf and West Indies Oil Company on 270 hectares of land. The site was chosen because a large amount of land was available for development, as the area was not heavily populated, and because of the position on Southampton Water. This provided access to the large amount of water used in the refining process, and also made it possible for crude oil to be brought to the site in ocean tankers by sea. Proximity to Southampton was also a factor, as at the outset much of the plant's output was used to supply liners using Southampton Docks. Atlantic, Gulf and West Indies were bought out by British-Mexican Petroleum in 1923, and they, in turn, were taken over by the Anglo-American Oil Company in 1926, which was the British affiliate of Esso. In 1939 capacity was around 600,000 tonnes of crude oil per annum (approximately 12,000 barrels per day) which met just 6.7% of UK demand. Refining ceased during World War II, when most refined oil for the UK was imported, and Fawley was used as a storage depot.