Apr 7 2006
Hydro and the works council for the aluminium plant in Stade have reached an agreement on the terms and time of the closure of the plant, as decided by Hydros board of directors in June 2005.
The aluminium plant in Stade has 410 employees and a production capacity of approximately 70,000 tonnes of primary aluminium.
The agreement with the works council includes a frame for social plan and business development activity. Hydro will also grant an additional premium payment related to operational performance in the remaining working time of the Stade plant.
The agreement enables the company to schedule and carry out the practical shutdown by the end of December 2006.
The value of the social plan package is estimated at EUR 38 million, of which most is expected to be charged in second quarter 2006. To balance new German regulations, the figure is somewhat higher than previously estimated.
Hydro decided in June 2005 to close down the aluminium plant in Stade with all its operations - carbon anode production, electrolysis and casthouse for extrusion ingot - due to high power prices in Germany.