The future of 190 textile jobs in the Donegal Gaeltacht is in doubt after yarn maker Comerama was put into receivership yesterday.
Unless a buyer is found, it is feared Comerama will suffer the same fate as sister factories in Castlecomer, Co Kilkenny, and Bunbeg, Co Donegal which closed seven months ago with 360 redundancies.
Staff were told to report for work on Monday, but the decision to call in receivers Farrell Grant Sparks has fuelled rumours that the company's owner, Asian conglomerate Indorama Inc, has decided to relocate the business to Lithuania after staff refused to take a wage cut in February.
Comerama has been a key tenant at the Údarás na Gaeltachta industrial estate in Gweedore for 30 years and its closure would hit south west Donegal very hard. It is understood that Údarás executives did not learn the receiver had been called in until last night.
A Farrell Grant Sparks spokesman said Comerama had experienced "ongoing trading difficulties" but declined to elaborate. It was too early to assess whether there was a realistic chance of finding a buyer or to set out a time frame for the company's restructuring, he said.
The Donegal plant is rumoured to have been struggling for some time and earlier this year staff were put on a three-day week. But as recently as 2001 its Dublin-registered parent company Comer Holdings showed a €9.9 million net profit, according to registered accounts.
Local politicians have called on the Government and job creation agencies to intervene and guarantee the factory's survival.
"This is yet another blow to the Gweedore Industrial Estate, which has suffered almost 800 job losses within the last three year," said Mr Dinny McGinley, Fine Gael TD for Donegal South West.
Describing the Gweedore plant as "state of the art", Mr McGinley said Comerama had been awash with rumours that its Thailand-based owners wanted to moving operations to Lithuania, where wages are significantly cheaper.
"I am calling on Tánaiste Mary Harney, Gaeltacht Minister Eamon O'Cuiv, Údarás na Gaeltachta and other agencies to come together and rescue these jobs," he added.
Union officials said they were dismayed but not surprised at the announcement. With staff working part-time over recent months, it had long been apparent Comerama was in difficulty, said local SIPTU official Mr Sean Reilly.
The closure of the Comerama textiles mill in Castlecomer last December continues to generate controversy with staff in dispute with the owners over redundancy entitlements.
Workers at the Kilkenny plant were told by management that production costs in Ireland, for yarn and wool, are six times higher than in India and Pakistan where the bulk of the group's operations are located.
It is believed that a worldwide slump in demand was responsible for the crisis.
