FUTURE GLOOMY FOR REFINING INDUSTRY IN WESTERN EUROPE.

After 7 years of widespread plant closures and multibillion dollar investments in upgrading facilities, European refiners still face a gloomy future. With demand for oil products unlikely to show significant growth during the rest of the decade and more products due from new export capacity in the Middle East and North Africa, more plant closures are on the horizon. Some topics discussed in this connection are the following: capacity cuts; a record of closures; more cuts due; the rise in conversion capacity; the fuel oil boom; hydroskimming losses; new supplies from outside Europe; refineries in North Africa and the Middle East; other sources of petroleum products; protectionist sentiments; and the issue of unleaded gasoline.