French strikers continue. Some refineries still offline after two and a half weeks

Some French refineries remain offline after more than two weeks of strikes that have disrupted production and energy supplies. However, the intervention of police and the requisitioning of workers have enabled TotalEnergies to restart its refinery in Normandy, which accounts for more than a fifth of France's refining capacity.

French President Emmanuel Macron is seeking to push through new pension reforms, which have led to repeated strikes. The protests, part of a nationwide movement against changes to the pension system, including raising the retirement age in France to 64, have triggered strikes at energy refineries.

Strikers began their action on 7 March, and some refineries are still not operating. Attempts to requisition workers at the Fos depot led to clashes with police, leaving officers injured. While French petrol stations are generally well supplied, stocks are dwindling in some regions in the south of France.

Requisitioning workers

Four refineries were still shut down on Friday. These included the TotalEnergies refinery in Gonfreville-l'Orcher, in Normandy's Seine-Maritime department. However, operations were restored after police intervened, allowing fuel supplies to resume to the Paris basin.