Athlone firm to close with loss of 96 jobs

THE ANNOUNCEMENT that almost 100 manufacturing jobs will be lost in Co Westmeath has been described as a massive blow to the area.

Athlone-based electrical cable manufacturer Nexans Ireland yesterday revealed it is to close its plant in the town this summer with the loss of 96 jobs.

The company has been manufacturing power cables for the energy, industrial and general markets in Ireland since 1970.

Fianna Fáil TD for Longford-Westmeath Mary O'Rourke said the decision by the company to pull out of Athlone was devastating and a big blow for the midlands town. "It is very bad news for Athlone because Nexans has been here for a long time."

She added: "Nexans's management contacted me to say it was pulling out due to the unhappy currency situation with the dollar at the moment."

The company also said the plant had been recording a loss for almost 10 years and it is understood that intense competition was another factor in its decision to close its Irish operation.

The company said it had informed Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Micheál Martin that the decision to close was final.

Ms O'Rourke said the redundancies came as a major disappointment following positive news for Athlone on the jobs front in recent weeks.

"We have had two good announcements recently with finance and medicare companies moving to Athlone, both we were glad to welcome. But jobs in manufacturing are difficult to replace," she said.

"We will be investing our energies in finding a replacement in this area and ensuring the Nexans staff get good redundancy packages."

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times