A "
scenario
" allowing the safeguard of 400 jobs on the site of Béthune (Pas-de-Calais) has been proposed to Bridgestone by the government, announced Monday the Minister Delegate in charge of Industry Agnès Pannier-Runacher.
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This industrial project put forward by the Accenture firm, which plans to maintain tire production on the site, requires restructuring and 100 million euros of investment.
"
We asked Bridgestone to take the time to explore this additional scenario
," said Agnès Pannier-Runacher after a meeting with employee representatives and local elected officials.
The fate of 863 site employees on borrowed time
Last month, Bridgestone's European management announced the closure of the Béthune tire plant, leaving the fate of the site's 863 employees suspended.
And hundreds of other contract workers.
At the end of September, a crisis meeting was organized with the management of Bridgestone, local elected officials and the executive.
At its end, the management of Bridgestone had indicated in a press release that the closure of the Béthune site was "
the only option
", but that it intended "to
actively participate in the search for solutions for the site and the territory
".
At the time, its president for the Europe zone, Laurent Dartoux, had specified that the group was considering “
alternative site conversion projects, with and without Bridgestone
”.
On October 12, the State said it was
“ready to invest”
alongside the equipment manufacturer in order to safeguard activity and employment.
The Minister for Industry mentioned in particular various scenarios for maintaining activity.
Like
"another tire production, this is what Bridgestone did on its Italian site where it went from low value-added production (...) to more complex, more expensive tires"
, or activities
"around"
the production of tires, logistics, or recycling, or an activity that is not linked to the world of tires.