The administrators for the owners of the Prax Lindsey oil refinery have set out how they see the future panning out for the 87 forecourts owned by the beleaguered firm, which is likely to result in them being sold off
On 30th June 2025, Prax Group, owner of Britain’s only domestically-owned oil refinery, collapsed into administration. This sent tremors through the UK energy sector and raised questions about energy security, job stability, and government oversight of critical infrastructure.
Prax Group was built by Winston Soosaipillai and his wife Arani, who began their journey from a single petrol station purchase in 1999 and expanded it into a multinational with billions in revenue and 950+ staff over two decades. However, once a British business success story has now ended in financial turmoil.
The Prax collapse represents a classic case of over-leveraging during expansion. In 2021, Prax acquired the Lindsey oil refinery from French oil giant Total for nearly $170 million. This acquisition more than tripled the group’s revenues to nearly $10 billion but also saddled the company with unsustainable debt.
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