France strikes continue, TotalEnergies' refinery deliveries suspended

Deliveries from TotalEnergies' refineries were suspended on Wednesday, electricity production reduced and train services seriously disrupted as a nationwide strike against planned pension reforms continued. Strikes also continued at Esso's (ExxonMobil) refineries in Fos in northern France, and in Port Jerome in southern France, blocking fuel deliveries, Germinal Lancelin, a representative for the CGT union, told Reuters. Some 90% of the Fos workers were currently on strike and 20% of those at Port Jerome, he said.

Deliveries from TotalEnergies' refineries were suspended on Wednesday, electricity production reduced and train services seriously disrupted as a nationwide strike against planned pension reforms continued. Around 1.28 million people took to the streets on Tuesday in demonstrations across the country, the interior ministry said, making turnout for the protest - the sixth against the reforms this year - the highest so far.

This is a critical time for the labour union and the government since President Emmanuel Macron hopes parliament will adopt his plan to raise the pension age by two years to 64 before April. Unions are trying to mount pressure on the government with rolling strikes from now in some sectors including at TotalEnergies oil refineries. It was the first time unions have decided on rolling strikes - which can start and finish at any time - since the protest movement started at the end of January.

TotalEnergies said 54% of its 269 refinery workers on shift this Wednesday were on strike. Strikes also continued at Esso's (ExxonMobil) refineries in Fos in northern France, and in Port Jerome in southern France, blocking fuel deliveries, Germinal Lancelin, a representative for the CGT union, told Reuters.

Some 90% of the Fos workers were currently on strike and 20% of those at Port Jerome, he said. Access to TotalEnergies' refinery in Gonfreville l'Orcher, in northern France, was still blocked by unionists at a motorway roundabout exit, with wood pallets and tires set on fire, according to a Reuters photographer.

At the same roundabout, a main exit for parts of Le Havre port, trucks were waiting in line and unable to proceed. The four French LNG terminals and all of the gas storage facilities also remained blocked, FNME-CGT representative Fabrice Coudour said.

Meanwhile, French power production was reduced by 11.2 gigawatts (GW) on Wednesday morning as the strike affected nuclear, thermal and hydropower plants, operator EDF data showed. The supply reduction was equivalent to about 18% of total production. Strikes have had a large impact on power demand, Kpler analyst Emeric de Vigan told Reuters, adding that the reduced volume of nuclear generation was mostly being replaced by coal or gas, emitting a lot more carbon dioxide.

However, a big drop in generation generally means the supply-demand balance is quite relaxed, he added. Railway traffic continued to be affected by the strike, though to a lesser degree than on Tuesday, with one in three high-speed trains running, on average, and one in three local trains. The Paris metro was still disrupted.

Senators continued to debate the pension bill.

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