Question 18569 — industry

Summary

Mr. Jean-François Coulomme questions the Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty on the industrial wasteland of Château-Feuillet (formerly Ferroglobe) in La Léchère, in Savoie. Energy-intensive industries developed in Alpine valleys more than a century ago to access hydroelectric power. This is how the Château-Feuillet site, in Tarentaise, saw development on around ten hectares of electro-metallurgical activities around the production of silicon. The multinational Ferroglobe incomprehensibly decided to stop Ferropem's activity and laid off more than 200 people in 2022 without the economic reason being recognized by the Ministry of Labor; around twenty agents are still currently protected employees due to the refusal of the economic reason by the administration. Ferroglobe sold this 12 ha “industrial wasteland” to the company Ugi'Ring with capital of 100,000 euros, with the exception of the 2 ha landfill area retained by Ferropem and whose fate is unknown. This industrial wasteland is located: next to the RN90 which is saturated with cars, often stopped during the interchange of trips to the winter sports resorts; about a hundred meters from the municipal school; has a few decameters of housing, a hotel, a spa which existed well before the establishment of factories, and right next to three rivers, including the Isère. The company Ugi'Ring is the Ugitech subsidiary in Ugine, located 30 km from Château-Feuillet, and which benefited from public aid of 9.4 million euros in 2021 to develop the circular economy project by recycling waste from the Ugine steelworks and 20 million euros as critical metals. This project was planned on the Ugine site. Seizing the opportunity of Ferropem's cessation of activity at Château-Feuillet, Ugi'Ring requested significant public aid for a project increasing from 13,000 tonnes of steelmaking waste to 77,000 tonnes per year of inputs including 50,000 tonnes of unspecified hazardous waste. In doing so, the project consists of bringing into the narrow Tarentaise valley, through trucks, 80,000 tonnes per year of toxic products, to then bring out of the valley 26,000 tonnes of products extracted from the Ugi'Ring oven(s), after incineration and treatment operations near homes, a school, a spa and several rivers including the Isère. The project provides for 3 or 4 chimneys 33 meters high, through which smoke will escape whose composition is not communicated, and probably PFAS and other toxic molecules, which is particularly worrying for populations. Narrow valley aerology often prevents the circulation of air masses, which is an aggravating factor in this type of geographical configuration. The population was not involved in the choice of recovery and destiny of this strategic industrial wasteland. She discovered the Ugi'Ring file in February 2024 at the time of the public inquiry with a view to authorizing the Ugi'Ring company to operate the site and establishing public easements, several months after the purchase of the site by the Ugi'Ring company. Despite the lack of official information, residents mobilized very quickly: in a few days more than 800 people came together on social networks, a petition was signed by 17,000 people while the population of territory is 6,500 inhabitants. The citizen collective organized public meetings which made it possible to inform and debate on the issues of this “high threshold” Seveso site project, and developed an alternative project to propose another future for this site, corresponding to local economic and social needs: reception of businesses since the assembly of the Pays de Tarentaise Vanoise declares the lack of 30 ha to accommodate economic activities in this territory. The number of industrial jobs per hectare is on average 30 to 50 in France. With Ugi'Ring, we have 5, and perhaps, ultimately, 10 jobs per hectare. The alternative project makes it possible to envisage more than 300 jobs with the reception of several companies, which reduces the risk regarding the sustainability of jobs. Conversely, the company Ugi'Ring, which depends on the international group Swiss Steel, and whose part of the capital belongs to a Russian oligarch, is vulnerable and does not commit over the long term, despite the significant public aid which is not the subject of compensation binding the beneficiary holding company, and does not commit further to the financial guarantee of risks and potential industrial disasters, since the capital committed by the industrialist is only 100,000 euros. This alternative project also provides for the creation numerous housing units in a part of land that is not polluted, which would meet strong demand (for a main residence at an affordable price, particularly for rental). Taking into account the “ZAN” law, this alternative project has the advantage of developing jobs and housing without any consumption of non-anthropized spaces, and without risk for a mountain area in full reconversion of its economic model. until now largely dependent on winter tourism, and for which 4-season tourism is a challenge for maintaining several tens of thousands of seasonal and permanent jobs. Thus, the MP's questions are as follows: following the public inquiry which raised more than 900 questions, most of which were unanswered, and risks for the population as well as for the environment, can they suspend any State decision? Can the Minister organize a consultation with all the stakeholders to consider all the hypotheses, including that of finding another site for the Ugi'Ring project and considering an alternative project in La Léchère? Can he provide all the information on the 54,000 tonnes of difference between the inputs and outputs of the Ugi'Ring project? Can it guarantee the absence of impact on agricultural activity (AOC Beaufort zone), on beekeeping, on the health of local residents, on the activity of the spa resort of La Léchère, on noise pollution, on accidental spills of toxic substances into waterways, on seismic risks and the risk of disasters? Given the proximity to the Natura 2000 zone of the Lauzière massif, the preserved mountain site of Naves benefiting from a policy financed under soft tourism, how does he see the compatibility of this Seveso project with the policy of promoting the natural heritage undertaken by the Aigueblanche valleys, largely financed by public funds in particular within the framework of the “Valley Space”? Who will pay for the consequences on agricultural activity (AOP Beaufort zone), on beekeeping, on the health of local residents, on the activity of the spa resort of La Léchère, on the quality of the air and water? The Feurs steel factory (Loire), which also practices battery recycling and processing, which was managed by one of the shareholders of Ugi'Ring, has experienced around ten accidents resulting in deaths and serious injuries: what confidence can we have in these managers? On an investment of around 90 million euros, public subsidies being 30 million euros, how can we justify these public payments benefiting a holding company? foreign capital, also in financial difficulty? What guarantees are required from the majority shareholder to ensure the economic, social and environmental viability of this activity? He finally asks him what he thinks of the under-density of jobs in the Ugi'Ring project compared to the surface area exploited, while Tarentaise is lacking land for the expansion of local businesses, strongly linked to tourist, thermal, winter sports and pastoralism activities, as well as the medical, paramedical, well-being, catering and hotel services that accompany them.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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1. 11 June 2024

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