Shell's refinery in the east end of Montreal cannot be shut down yet, the Quebec Superior Court has ruled. (CBC)

The Quebec Superior Court has ruled that oil-giant Shell cannot start dismantling its Montreal refinery yet and begin converting it to a storage centre, giving hope to the roughly 800 people who work at the facility that their jobs might be saved.

The court issued a temporary injunction on Wednesday, barring Shell from doing anything that will render the refinery in the city's east end unusable. The injunction remains in effect through July 16.

The injunction will give Shell more time to consider a $420-million offer for the refinery from Israeli oil giant Delek, said the union representing the 500 refinery employees who are unionized.

The offer remains on the table, despite the fact that it has already been rejected by Shell, said Jean-Claude Rocheleau, president of Local 121 of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada.

"The buyer who's trying to buy the refinery is still there," said Rocheleau.

Shell announced in January that it failed to find an adequate buyer for the 76-year-old facility and would convert it into a storage centre for gasoline, diesel and aviation fuels. In June, it rejected two final purchase offers and said it would wind down refining operations by the end of the summer.

Rocheleau said the court order means workers will no longer have to follow company orders to start draining petroleum residue from some pipes.

This summer, a parliamentary committee will examine whether Shell did everything it could to find a suitable buyer for the refinery.

A representative from Shell said the company will comply with the court order.

The union has said that as few as 30 workers would likely be needed to operate the facility after the conversion is complete.