SCOTS motorists have been warned to brace themselves for weeks of fuel shortages following the shutdown of the country's only crude oil refinery.

Management at the Grangemouth refinery, which supplies about 85% of Scotland's fuel, have begun closing down the plant, claiming that impending strike action by workers will compromise safety.

Up to 1,200 members of the Unite union intend to walk out next Sunday and Monday following a row over pensions. The shutdown began two days ago and will be completed by Friday.

Ineos, the refinery's owner, said yesterday that Scotland and the north of England could be left without fuel for at least a month and that the impact would be felt throughout Britain.

It is feared that the petrol shortage could lead to panic buying. Under existing emergency plans drawn up by the UK government to deal with fuel shortages, police could be posted outside petrol stations, with supplies rationed and opening hours restricted.

The closure will also limit severely the production of North Sea oil, much of which passes through the refinery. Gas extraction will also be affected.

Ministers held crisis talks on the matter on Friday afternoon. Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, convened a meeting of the Scottish government's emergency planning subcommittee, attended by the deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon, the finance secretary John Swinney and the rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead.

“The union is well aware that a 48-hour strike will cause fuel chaos in Scotland and the north of England for weeks on end,” said Tom Crotty, the chief executive of Ineos.

“This is a huge oil refinery and they know you can't just turn it on and off like a tap. A month is our best guess but safety considerations will be at the forefront of everything we do.”

Ineos said it had been forced to begin shutting down the site immediately on safety grounds after the union refused to accept its plans to alter the terms of its pension scheme.

Last night Scottish ministers called on both sides to resolve the dispute. A government spokeswoman said: “The Scottish government is closely monitoring the situation, and is fully aware of the potential disruption that could arise.”

Motoring organisations have warned of severe disruption, and appealed to drivers to avoid unnecessary car journeys and resist the temptation to stockpile fuel.

“We are quite anxious about the possibility of panic buying,” said Sheila Rainger of the RAC Foundation.

“People will undoubtedly be concerned but they should try to be economical with their journeys while this strike is on.”

The dispute centres on Ineos's plans to require members of its final salary pension scheme to make a contribution to their retirement for the first time.

It has proposed a 6% employee contribution, phased in over six years, which it claims would still leave employees in a better position than most British private-sector workers. It also intends to close the final salary pension scheme to new workers.

The company claims that more than a quarter of all the money it spends on employees at Grangemouth goes into the pension scheme and that the situation is unsustainable in the longer term as the company tries to improve its competitiveness.

Unite claims the site is profitable, making £3m a day, and that the pension scheme is well-funded and affordable and should be open to new members. “The changes to the scheme Ineos are proposing are unreasonable and have forced our members at Grangemouth to take industrial action for the first time,” said Phil McNulty, Unite's national officer.

Ineos said it had made concessions to Unite and guaranteed that no changes would be made to existing pensions before next April, and accused the union of “rushing” to take industrial action.

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