Question 17772 — industry

Summary

Mr. Jean-François Coulomme alerts the Minister Delegate to the Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, responsible for industry and energy, on the situation at the Niche Fused Alumina factory in Savoie. Tuesday April 23, 2024, the Niche Fused Alumina factory, manufacturer of abrasive products located in La Bâthie in Savoie, was placed in receivership with an observation period of 6 months. This is the most old Tarentaise factory which employs nearly 180 people and benefits from unique know-how since it is the only French manufacturer of white corundum, a material which is used in the manufacture of numerous products in the automotive, aerospace and even medical sectors. Waiting for a buyer, the site is facing significant financial difficulties which prevent it from ensuring the profitability of the activity. Difficulties particularly due to competition from foreign companies who practice very low prices with very low production quality. For illustration, a Chinese factory sells white corundum at the same price as the raw material purchased by a French company to manufacture it. However, the factory has significant assets. Indeed, the order book is full and the prospects for new markets are good, whether in the field of heat dissipation or water filtration systems. In addition, the factory benefits from a hydroelectric power station on site, which would allow production gains with the necessary investments for its rehabilitation. Employees have already been forced to make significant compromises through successive reorganizations in order to maintain business continuity. All this in a context of underinvestment on the part of the current shareholder. The union representatives that Mr. MP was able to meet requested the Government's support in the search for a buyer for the site and also requested the establishment of an anti-dumping mechanism at European level in order to regulate the importation of Chinese products and secure European corundum production. So can the Minister confirm to him that the State and its ministry are prepared to implement the necessary means to support the recovery of the site and safeguard the industrial activity of the La Bâthie factory? In addition, he asks him if he intends to initiate discussions at European level on the implementation of protectionist measures with a view to protecting the sector from unfair competition coming from Asia.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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