Lithuania’s Kedainiai-based phosphate fertiliser producer Lifosa is resuming operations after a nearly four-month break. The company is facing various challenges ahead but hopes to overcome them all, acting CEO Regvita Ivanoviene has said.
“We face many challenges, both related to the sale of our products and with the purchase of raw materials. We had to refocus very quickly, and we are still looking for buyers and creating our new history with direct sales as well as suppliers of raw materials,” Ivanoviene said.
“Restoration of supply is not something that can be addressed in one day hence there will be many more challenges ahead,” she added.
Kestas Slama, head of the company’s trade union, said that the company was very important to the district of Kedainiai. He hopes that all employees, including those furloughed, would be able to get back to work eventually.
“We hope this process will be sustainable and operation will not be suspended after several months of work. It is a very important event for Kedainiai, we understand perfectly well that this district is dependent on this company,” Slama said.
The company supervised by an interim administrator launched its sulphuric acid production unit on August 7.
The company is expected to operate at a 60-70% capacity with 80% of its usual workforce until the end of August, with the remaining workers expected to join in at a later stage.
Andrey Melnichenko, a Russian oligarch with close ties with the Kremlin and an indirect owner of Lifosa, was sanctioned by the EU on March 9. Subsequently, Lifosa’s accounts were frozen, and the company suspended operation on April 10.
On May 24, an interim administrator started work at Lifosa,charged with ensuring the company’s operations without breaching international sanctions.
According to data from the State Social Insurance Fund (Sodra), the company currently has 947 employees, down from 1,030 before the introduction of sanctions. (LRT/Business World Magazine)
