Lemvig firms seek jobs for workers after FMC closure

Local businesses are looking for ways to keep workers in the area after chemical plant FMC Rønland, formerly known as Cheminova, closes at the end of the year, DR reports. The plant has been the area’s largest private employer for decades, and its closure will leave about 400 people without jobs, equivalent to five per cent of the local workforce.

Employers and local leaders are exploring ways to create jobs, with the goal of retaining as many of the workers as possible. Lemvig Municipality, an area in north-west Jutland with 18,500 residents, is also seeking state support to establish an ammunition factory there.

Wood-burning stove manufacturer Heta A/S is considering bringing some work back to Lemvig from elsewhere in Denmark and Eastern Europe. The company says it could initially create five or six jobs, though its director, Carsten Bach, acknowledged that this is a small contribution compared with FMC Rønland’s roughly 400 affected employees.

Heta has struggled to find workers in recent years, and some of its machines regularly stand idle because there are not enough employees to operate them. Bach said that if 25 local companies each took on a few workers, the area would make significant progress.

Frank Abildtrup, deputy chair of the 3F Holstebro-Lemvig union, praised local employers for examining every possibility. “I’m damn proud that we have such good companies,” he said.

Lemvig Mayor Jens Lønberg said unemployment in the area is low and that the FMC workers are in demand. He praised their work ethic, punctuality and low sickness absence, and said he wants to create opportunities that will keep them within the municipality.

Abildtrup said the area had faced difficult times before and would get through the closure as well.