Mondi to Close Silicart Plant


Johannesburg, South Africa 27 November 2014 -- Mondi has announced plans to close down its Silicart plant in Italy which produces silicone-coated release liners. 62 employees are affected by the move.

Mondi will part with its Silicart release liner plant in Anzola dell'Emilia near Bologna, Italy. The company announced it would close down the site and cease production operations from the end of 2015. Talks with local unions about the future of the mill's 62 employees had already begun, it added.

Mondi said a restructuring of its operations was necessary given the challenging economic and competitive environment, including overcapacity on the market and the trend of some customers to in-source production. The company plans to centralise production capacities in its larger and more competitive plants such as the German sites Mondi Inncoat in Raubling and Mondi Jülich as well as the Mondi Heerlen site in the Netherlands and Mondi Release Liner Austria located in Hilm.

The local trade unions are protesting against the shutdown. There was no reason to close the site since it had been in the black with €521,000 in 2013 and is expected to book profits of €1.2m this year, said the Slc-Cgil union in Bologna.

Mondi Silicart produces silicone-coated release liners for the label industry and commodity elements of graphic art applications. The company's main focus is on single-side coated release liners, both printed and unprinted.