Ferroalloy producer Feral - Tulcea on Sunday unplugged the last two functioning furnaces, according to union leader Ion Simineanu. "We started to suspect this was going to happen when the raw materials supplies were interrupted. Many of the workers were sent home on a fraction of their wage. It"s quite likely what we all are going to be fired in early 2008," he said.
He specified that some 200 of the factory"s 480 employees had been sent home on 75% of their baseline salary. Feral resumed production on July 1st, 2007, about 6 months after the shareholders had decided to suspend operations following the suspension of the electricity supply agreement with Energy Holding. Energy supply problems came at the same time as social problems, considering that the union members decided to go on strike to protest the management"s failure to sign a framework employment contract.
Feral was established in 1976. In 2002, the majority package was sold to Feral Ltd - Jersey. Feral is the only ferroalloy producer in Romania.