Taoiseach says sanctioning Aughinish plant would ‘harm Europe more than Russia’

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, Press Association

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that sanctioning Limerick-based plant Aughinish Alumina, which has a Russian parent company, would damage Ireland and the EU more than Russia.

He was speaking after reports that the company warned the government of potential job losses in Ireland and of a restricted supply of alumina across Europe if it fell under Russian sanctions.

Speaking on Friday, the Taoiseach said that the arguments in the letter, which was sent to his office this week, were not new and that he did not view them as a threat.

“It would have an impact if there were sanctions on Aughinish, in terms of the employment there, so we are looking at about close to 1,000 direct employment in terms of both contractors and 470 odd more who are working there, but also, of course, the downstream impact,” he said at the Bloom festival in Dublin.

“Aughinish has been part of a wider European supply chain issue.

“In other words, it supplies products to Dunkirk in France and to Sweden, and so it is designated as a critical raw material.

“The whole principle of sanctions is we don’t damage ourselves more than Russia, or that they don’t become self-defeating, and it would appear to me now, Aughinish falls into that category.”

He added: “It would impact on the Swedish plant, which is the sole supplier of alumina there, and in terms of Dunkirk plant in France, so what you’d get is a very strong inflationary potential outcome of that in the European Union itself, and the impact of Russia would not be significant.

“So, therefore, you would be harming Europe much more than Russia.”

Asked if Aughinish should be nationalised, in a similar way to the UK government nationalising British Steel, Mr Martin said that was “too simplistic”.

“There’s a lot of complexities attached to that, that would not be simple, whether the government has the capacity to do that, to run a plant of that kind.

“I think at this stage it’s not something that we’re contemplating at all.”

Asked if the Irish government had lobbied the European Union on the issue, he said: “I think we engaged with the European Union.

“I think we discussed these issues, lobbying is probably too strong a word, but we do discuss it as all member states do when it comes to packages in relation to sanctions, and there are fundamental principles at play, and we will continue to review it.

“The European Union will, as well.”