The DBoard of directors of Ancap suspended the operation of the portland de Minas plantas reported in a press release.
The reason for the decision obeys “a union decision that puts integrity at risk” of the establishment.
The statement indicates that Ancap was seen “obliged” to suspend production until safe operating conditions are restored.
The state company reported that it is a “priority” of the Board of Directors “preserve infrastructure and avoid damage” in the plant facilities.
As he stated, customers will be served with the production of the Paysandú plant and with “accumulated inventories.”
The union had earlier decided to cut overtime and also change shifts at this plant until the next Fancap representative assembly on March 4. Through another statement, previously disclosed this Tuesday, the Ancap union argued that there is no Macro Agreement that establishes, among other rights and obligations, the implementation of union guards that guarantee the safety of equipment and people.
Shock over the search for a private
Three months ago Ancap launched a technical data room aimed at potential partners interested in becoming partners of the company in the area of Portland and lime production. To date, 16 companies have shown interest and 11 have paid a fee or fee of US$ 5 thousand to have access to the reserved information about that business. Most of them are international companies with operations in Argentina and Brazil. There are also other firms with a presence in the local market.
Some of these private firms have already begun visits to the cement production plants located in Minas and Paysandú. However, that process did not start in the best way for the interests of Ancap. In at least three visits, there were protests and distortive measures by the Fancap union, which rejects the incorporation of a private.
One such event occurred during the visit of ex-soccer player and businessman Diego Lugano to the Paysandú plant at the beginning of Februaryhad informed The Observer the leader of Fancap in that department, Horacio Depratti. The former captain of the Celeste is one of the owners of Cemento Charrúa –along with Diego Godín–, but on that occasion he arrived along with other businessmen from the Brazilian company Hipermix, the union leader reported.
Last week, the union announced that if the visits are repeated, production will stop and the furnace at the Minas plant will be turned off. Faced with this situation, Ancap alerted the union about the risks that can be caused by turning off the oven from one day to the next. The situation was also notified to the National Directorate of Labor of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.
The visits of potential partners are temporarily suspended, although they will continue in the coming days, because it is a point that is within the specifications that the companies paid.
Ancap extended until March 15 the deadline to access technical information, and until April 29 the date for the coordination of visits to the cement plants, and the lime plant located in Treinta y Tres.
