Sale of Whitegate Refinery in Cork Harbour under consideration

The owners of the Whitegate Refinery in Cork Harbour are considering the sale of the vital asset.

Senior executives of Canadian firm Irving Oil were in Cork and Dublin last week, briefing staff, Government officials, and local representatives on their future plans.

It is understood the company will go to the international market in the coming months to sound out potential buyers for the facility.

Whitegate is Ireland’s only oil refinery, processing almost 75,000 barrels of crude oil each day and employing more than 200 people. It opened in 1959 and was acquired by Irving Oil in 2016.

In a statement, Irving Oil said: “Like any company, we regularly review our portfolio to evaluate our business needs, and as part of this, we are assessing certain business segments and respective scenarios to understand how to best position our company for a strong future."

Supporting energy security

“We are proud of the critical role our Ireland businesses play in supporting energy security, and we remain committed to ensure our customers and communities are served safely and reliably,” the company said.

Fine Gael TD for East Cork Noel McCarthy said he and his constituency colleagues were briefed on the plans by Irving Oil executives in recent days.

“It was a positive meeting where they assured us there was no threat to the facility’s future. They are going to the international market to see if there are potential buyers,” he said.

“They assured us that projects and investments tied to Whitegate are continuing as normal. We underlined how important Whitegate is to Ireland and to East Cork as the country’s only refinery,” he said.