Two-week deadline set to find buyer for ailing Lindsey oil refinery

Officials person acceptable a two-week deadline to find a purchaser for the ailing Prax Lindsey lipid refinery amid increasing doubts implicit the site’s aboriginal viability.

Sky News has learnt that imaginable buyers of the Lincolnshire tract were contacted connected Monday by the restructuring experts hired erstwhile the refinery's parent, State Oil, collapsed into insolvency proceedings aboriginal past week.

Sources said that FTI Consulting, which was appointed peculiar manager of the works by the Official Receiver, had begun canvassing involvement from 3rd parties, with a two-week deadline said to person been "pencilled successful but taxable to revision".

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Ministers person ordered an Insolvency Service probe into the behaviour of the husband-and-wife squad down State Oil and the wider Prax Group, alleging they were misled astir the company's finances successful the build-up to its insolvency.

The radical is reported to beryllium the UK taxation authorities successful the portion of £250m, with insiders saying that Sanjeev Kumar Soosaipillai and his woman Arani were successful talks astir a Time to Pay statement with HM Revenue & Customs anterior to State Oil's collapse.

Last Friday, Sky News revealed that the Official Receiver had reached a deal to proceed buying crude lipid from the commodities trading giant, Glencore.

The woody provided a impermanent lifeline to the Lindsey refinery, which employs much than 400 people.

The works - 1 of lone a fistful of lipid refineries inactive operating successful the UK - supplies astir 10% of the UK's fuel.

Prax Group besides spans interests successful oilfield exploration and substance retailing, which whitethorn besides beryllium sold by administrators astatine Teneo, though those assets are not insolvent.

A spokesperson for FTI Consulting declined to comment.