Strikers step up pressure on top French oil port

PARIS (Reuters) – Workers at France’s largest oil port of Fos-Lavera near Marseille prolonged on Friday the blockade they started the previous day, the port authority said.

The two-day long strike blocked 21 oil tankers from entering the port or from being loaded or unloaded, the port said in a statement.


Operations at Fos-Lavera and other oil ports have been disrupted by a weekly 24-hour strike since mid-April in a protest against government plans to privatise loading activities at state-run ports.

But strikers have stepped up the pressure by extending their weekly one-day strike and are now planning a new stoppage on June 9.

Total, France’s largest refiner, said its refining operations were running normally despite the dispute.
“We do everything in our power to maintain the production level in our refineries,” a Total spokesman said.

Guardian