Alcan, the Canadian beverage packaging provider, has announced that it will begin a consultation process with employees and union representatives on the proposed closure of the Burntisland facility in Scotland.
In January 2002, Alcan indicated that it would withdraw from the European specialty chemicals market. Since then, Alcan has been actively seeking potential buyers for the Burntisland operations, but no sale transaction could be successfully structured.
The Burntisland facility has drawn media attention in the last couple of years over pollution worries. Adding to the problems of trying to sell the plant on, the European aluminium smelting industry has seen considerable consolidation, all of which has rendered the sale of the facility difficult.
Alcan is a multinational, market-driven company and a global leader in aluminum and specialty packaging with 2001 revenues of $12.6 billion (€12.7m). With operations in primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum as well as flexible and specialty packaging, Alcan employs 48,000 people and has operating facilities in 38 countries.