North Sea strike threat puts UK fuel supplies at risk, Unite says

More than 160 offshore workers employed by Apache could begin strike action later this month after a breakdown in pay negotiations, the Unite union said. The union warned that industrial action by electrical experts, production technicians and radio operators could affect the Forties and Beryl oilfields. It said the Charlie platform could be brought to a standstill, potentially disrupting the Forties pipeline system, which Unite said handles almost a third of the UK’s oil and gas.

Unite said workers had rejected what it described as an unacceptable offer that would amount to a real-terms pay cut for many employees. It also said Apache had set deadlines for an agreement on back pay and indicated that payments could be withheld. The company disputed the union’s position.

Apache said it had offered staff a 4% pay increase and that offshore workers were already among the highest earners in the UK. It said the proposed increase was in line with the award given to non-unionised employees earlier in the year. Apache also said it had contingency plans, including retaining experienced personnel at key sites.

The company said any reduction in pipeline pressure caused by a strike would be comparable to routine maintenance outages and would not affect other producers’ ability to operate through the Forties system. The dispute comes as UK motorists face high fuel prices. The supplied material says the average price of diesel reached a record £2 a litre, while G7 leaders announced plans to release up to 100 million barrels from emergency crude and diesel stocks.

Apache’s parent company, APA Corporation, reported $1.4bn in after-tax profit and $9.2bn in revenue last year. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the union would not accept what it considered an unacceptable pay offer.