Strike to halt Celanese's vinyl acetate output at Tarragona

18 June 2002 17:26  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (CNI)--Celanese said Tuesday it will halt production of vinyl acetate in Tarragona during the proposed national one-day strike in Spain on Thursday (20 June).

A spokesman for the German chemicals firm told CNI that, to ensure safety, some workers will continue to operate the plant during strike under an agreement reached with the Works Council. However, there will be no 'effective' production.

He pointed out it will be less safe to shut the 110 000 tonne/year plant, Celanese's only production unit in Spain.

Dow Chemical said today it has reached an agreement with trade union workers to ensure a minimum level of service to cover safety at its Bilbao and Tarragona production sites during the Spanish strike. It does not yet know whether production at the sites will be disrputed.

Dow recognises the right of the workers to strike on Thursday, said a spokeswoman for the US group, but needs to maintain safety at the production sites. Dow produces ethylene, polyethylene (PE) and polyols at Tarragona, and styrene and styrofoam at Bilbao.

Yesterday, European polyolefins producer Basell said it expects the strike to have only a minimal impact on its high density polyethylene (hdPE) and polypropylene (PP) at Tarragona.

The strike has been called by trade unions after the Spanish government adopted measures to cut unemployment benefits.

By: Russell Ong
+44 208 652 3214

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