BP shuts Australia refinery after pump failure

PERTH Aug 13 (Reuters) - BP Plc (BP.L), one of four oil refiners in Australia, has partially shut production at its 137,000 barrels per day refinery in Western Australia after a pump failure, a union representing workers at the plant said on Thursday.

The plant was shut early last week and will remain suspended as workers plan to increase work stoppages at the plant to five hours per day from the previous one hour due to a wage dispute, Steve McCartney, state secretary of the Australia Manufacturing Workers Union, said in an email.

Wage negotiations are ongoing, the union said.

A BP spokesman declined comment, citing company policy. (Reporting by Fayen Wong and Luke Pachymuthu in SINGAPORE)