Greenpeace blocks huge oil plant

Greenpeace's flagship Rainbow Warrior is in action off the French coast

LE HAVRE, France -- Environmental group Greenpeace has blocked access to Exxon Mobil Corp's largest oil refinery in France, accusing the firm of sabotaging efforts to prevent global warming.

Lorries with flattened tyres were parked outside three of the four gates leading to the Port Jerome refinery and petrochemical plant near Le Havre in northern France, while Greenpeace's flagship, Rainbow Warrior, prevented river access.

The environmental group has accused the world's biggest oil firm of being "Climate Enemy No. 1."

About 60 protesters manned the blockade at Exxon Mobil Corp's subsidiary Esso France, while others entered the site on Tuesday.

The fourth gate onto the site, near the town of Notre-Dame-de-Grevanchon is for emergency vehicles only.

Esso's spokesman in Paris said: "There is a group of activists inside the site and until we have the situation under control, we can't say more."

Esso France was unable to immediately say how the blockade was affecting refinery and chemical operations.

Greenpeace campaign leader Laetitia de Marez told Reuters news agency: "We plan to stay as long as we possibly can."

It said in a statement that it had mounted the blockade to protest at what it called Esso's "sabotage" of international efforts to halt climate change.

Esso France refines 12.9 million tonnes of crude oil a year at its two sites.

Greenpeace has led a recent high-profile global campaign against Esso, and this latest blockade comes just days before U.S. President George W. Bush is due in France.

Bush's administration withdrew from the international Kyoto climate accord that was aimed at cutting greenhouse emissions, widely blamed for global warming and climate change.