01 August, 2017
LONDON-The largest crude-oil refinery in Europe may not reopen until later this month after being knocked offline by a fire over the weekend, causing gasoline and other fuel prices to rise globally, according to Royal Dutch Shell PLC, the facility's operator.
An oil refinery of Anglo-Dutch oil and gas giant Shell in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, was closed on Sunday after a major fire broke out on Saturday night. Nobody was injured. Firefighters brought the fire under control by around 6:00 am (0400 GMT/UTC).
"Shell is in the process of shutting down all the units at the site", a Shell spokesman told AFP. Shell did not confirm media reports that the fire may have been caused by a short circuit.
The operation of the plant can be recovered for several days.
Shell was not yet able to determine the damage on Sunday, or when the refinery would return to full function.
The shutdown led to Shell burning off excess gases at the plant, a process known as flaring.
According to the head of the regional security, there is no trace of release of toxic chemicals in the smoke, but there may be soot in the air.
The multinational oil conglomerate shut down most of its operations at the 404,000 barrel per day Pernis oil refinery in the Netherlands after a fire last week caused a power outage. He declined comment on the financial implications of the shutdown.
