UPDATE 2-Fos-Lavera strikes cost refiners 20 mln euros

(Updates with quotes, background)

By Muriel Boselli

PARIS, June 20 (Reuters) - Strikes at France's Fos-Lavera oil hub have cost refiners 20 million euros ($31.06 million) so far and forced some to operate at lower capacity, the head of French oil industry association UFIP said on Friday.

"The strike is costing around 20 million euros," Jean-Louis Schilansky told reporters.

Port workers at Fos-Lavera have been conducting a rolling series of strikes since mid-April to protest plans to reform state-run ports that shippers and cargo handling companies say are hampered by cumbersome and outmoded working practices.

"No refineries have stopped working but some are running at lower rates," Schilansky said.

Fos-Lavera with an oil traffic of 64.2 million tonnes, supplies crude to eight refineries in southeast France with a production capacity of around 800,000 barrels per day.

"We want port operations to be reliable, competitive and done in a service-orientated manner," Schilansky said, adding that those three criteria were not currently fulfilled.

Schilansky said a solution was needed to the dispute and he warned that there would be serious damage if it was prolonged.