Petroplus Holdings AG

An influential body of U.K. lawmakers said Thursday it will open an inquiry into the challenges facing the country's oil-refining industry, to see if recent closures threaten security of supply.The Energy and Climate Change Committee, which is appointed by parliament to examine government expenditure, administration and policy, said it was seeking evidence on what needs to be done to maintain a suitable baseline level of refining capacity.The U.K. had 18 oil refineries in the late 1970s--it has just seven in 2013.The most recent to close, in 2012, was Coryton, one of the largest and most modern facilities in Europe that supplied 10% of the U.K.'s fuel market. It was the second to shutter in the U.K. since the economic crisis hit in 2008.Increased competition from ultra-modern refineries in Asia and the Middle East, and increasingly stringent environmental standards, are adversely affecting U.K. refineries, the committee said Wednesday.Europe's economic woes are also playing their part,...

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