The largest industrial group in Extremadura has had to temporarily close four of its companies. The carrier strike hit some 210 workers of the Cristian Lay industrial group in three factories located in Jerez de los Caballeros related to the iron and steel sector, Alfonso Gallardo SA, Ferromallas and Galvacolor, and one located in Almendralejo, Ondupack.
“We cant do any more. Either there is not enough raw material to continue producing or there is no space to continue storing. Given this evidence, we have no choice but to stop the activity in these four companies, ”confirms TODAY the CEO of the group, Miguel Ángel Leal.
In Siderúrgica Balboa, the industry that generates the most direct employment in Extremadura (530 workers), it is enduring the obstacles derived from the strike by carriers, although its capacity to continue with the activity is gradually reducing. “We continue producing and we are going to try not to have to stop, but the truth is that every day it is more complicated,” concludes Leal.
Around thirty employees work at Alfonso Gallardo SA, the industrial seed of the Jerez group manufacturing steel tubes. In Ferromallas (electro-welded mesh), 40. In Galvacolor, which was reopened just three weeks ago after being closed in 2018 to produce galvanized sheet metal, there are 80 employees and it was going to increase its workforce in the short term. Finally, in Ondupack (cartonage) there are 60 who make up its staff.
Cristian Lay has granted forced vacations to those squads. He trusts that next week they can return to their jobs.
For its part, Inquiba, another of the large industries in Extremadura, has stopped some sections of its factory in Guareña but has not closed it down. Chemical Industries of Badajoz (Inquiba) It is dedicated to the manufacture of cleaning and care products, both personal and home. The supplies needed to craft are still very limited. In the last few hours, it has been able to receive merchandise by trucks, escorted, yes, that have been able to reach its facilities.
«It continues to cost us a lot of work to produce. I hope that we can have normality soon, ”says Juan Carmona Estévez, its general director. Inquiba’s workforce is around 300 workers.
Deutz and BA Glass
Two other large companies in the region are dodging the difficulties as best they can and maintaining their production. They are Deutz Spain, in Zafra, and BA Glass, in Villafranca de los Barros.
At Deutz, it is said that there are no significant incidents in the delivery of its parts (engines) to customers, but the strike is affecting its main national supplier of raw materials. “Although now we are not having major problems in the production part due to the existing stock of material, if the strike continues over time it will end up affecting our production,” he tells HOY.
Meanwhile, Iva Rodrigues, general director of the BA Glass glass factory, speaks in conversation with this newspaper of “a lot of concern because there are difficulties in having the necessary material to manufacture. We continue with production but there may be problems.
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Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.