THE re-start process at the Fife Ethylene Plant is going into its final stages this midweek and it will lead to continued flaring.

The amount of flaring since the start of the weekend has seen concern from the Mossmorran Action Group and local MSP Annabelle Ewing along with worried observations from residents in Cowdenbeath and Lochgelly.

Said plant boss Jacob McAlister: "We have now completed another key stage of our re-start with all of our major compressors now safely back online.

"This process of starting up our compressors has resulted in periodic levels of increased flaring. We will now move to our next and final stage, which is to re-start our distillation towers.

"This final stage requires a bit more feed gas, so you will see our elevated flare operating throughout. The flare itself may fluctuate in size as each tower comes online and starts to processes some of the gas".

He added: "We again stress that the use of the flare is the safest way to re-start our operations, but we recognise it can cause concern and frustration for some and so we continue working hard to reduce its size and duration.

"We appreciate that communities will want us to complete this work quickly, but hope you will understand that we are taking the time needed to conduct a safe re-start at every stage."