[ad_1]
The 65 employees at the Glomfjord factory in Meløy are partially sacked. Due to the crown, there may not be as many working at the same time. Therefore, shifts are divided to distribute the number of employees who work.
Production is also reduced to 20% of normal and that means they don’t make enough money for all expenses.
Assistant factory manager Odd Sandbakken. despair over the situation and not being helped to keep your head above water.
Photo: Bente H. Johansen / NRK
– It is a very difficult situation. After all, we are characterized by what is happening around us and we want the factory to continue operating.
– But we need financial help until we return to normal operation. That’s what the assistant factory manager Odd Sandbakken says.
– Do you have clients who want your product?
– Yes. There is a high demand for the product, all of our production ran out for the current year and half of capacity next year.
The melting furnaces where the ingots (silicon rods) are made before being cut into thin wafers used in solar panels.
Photo: Ole Dalen / NRK
Falling between two chairs
Cornerstone company Norwegian Crystals had poor earnings last year after a financial change.
In doing so, they are not eligible for assistance from government crisis packages. So it helps little for the orders to flow.
– Of course, the mood among employees is bad, says the head of union representative Anna Kristiansen.
– People are tired and bored, not only because of the crown, but also because this is the third dismissal they are going through. It is hard and heavy, but people stand up and produce more efficiently than ever, she says.
– How do employees react when not receiving support from crisis packages?
– They think it is absolutely terrible. After all, we are all painfully aware that we need to raise money if we want to survive, ”responds Kristiansen.
Also read:
The solar cell market is good news for the climate, but 80 are saying goodbye here: – Unfortunately
Glomfjord has been an industrial building since the end of the 19th century.
Photo: Bente H. Johansen
Still empty houses in the village after the previous bankruptcy
Renewable Energy Corporation (REC) manufactured silicon wafers for use in solar cells until production was discontinued in 2011. The Norwegian Crystals company resumed production of silicon products at REC’s former facilities in 2013.
“We have been through this before, when REC went bankrupt and we are still struggling with empty houses in the village,” says Anna Kristiansen.
– If this is also declared bankrupt, it will be even worse, and if we don’t get help, it will happen, she says.
There is a reduced operation at the plant due to the crown.
Photo: Bente H. Johansen / NRK
There could be 200 jobs here
Last year, they restructured the factory and added new capital. With several long layoff periods and production to a minimum, the company is now waging a fierce battle to survive.
– We have raw materials for two months of operation and we fight every day to raise capital. We have big plans, we want to double the capacity at the factory here, ”says Odd Sandbakken.
– So we can create 200 new jobs. So closing is not an option for us.
