They have been operating for 70 years and are facing bankruptcy

On Tuesday, the Provincial Social Dialogue Council in Kielce discussed the bankruptcy petition filed by Chemar in Kielce, which was filed with the Kielce District Court in July. The company, owned by the Industrial Development Agency, is said to be indebted by approximately PLN 20 million. Adrian Gadowski, head of the production planning department, speaking on behalf of the Chemar staff, pointed to the irrational – in the opinion of the employees – actions of the state Industrial Development Agency. – We are applying for a capital injection into the company to discharge the plant's debt and investments, which will allow the bankruptcy petition to be removed and jobs to be maintained – said Gadowski. ARP representatives participating in Tuesday's meeting pointed out that the Agency had been carrying out restructuring activities in Chemar since 2020, “but they did not bring any results”. They added that PLN 16 million had been allocated to the company's capital injection, and the machinery park had also been partially modernized. Despite this, the sum of liabilities recently exceeded the value of the assets.

According to Chemar CEO Krzysztof Adamczyk, appointed to the position on October 13, 2023, the difficult situation of the plant and its debt “is a legacy that it inherited from its predecessors.”

Adamczyk explained that the company was hit by the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. This caused the “market to collapse”. He also pointed out that “energy prices, which have gone up significantly, have caused the company to get very heavily indebted. We are a very energy-intensive industry and unfortunately energy prices have started to eat us up”.

– Foundry has been losing its business recently and there are fewer orders for us, too. However, we are still a supplier for the railway, energy and machinery industries. Foundry is key for these industries. We know that PKP is planning huge investments for the coming years and we expect new orders here. We want to develop the steel structure production segment. We are also talking to Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa about producing certain elements for the army – said Adamczyk.

Świętokrzyskie Voivode Józef Bryk reported that he had intervened in the Ministry of State Assets in the Chemar case. He had discussed the situation the company was in with the deputy head of the ministry, Jacek Bartmiński. It was jointly agreed that both MAP and ARP “will take immediate action” in the Chemar case.

He pointed out that the development of the arms industry, which needs suppliers and partners, including those from the foundry sector, may be an opportunity for the Kielce plant.

The Provincial Social Dialogue Council adopted a “Position in support of the demands of employees of Chemar SA in connection with the vision of job losses caused by the filed application for declaring bankruptcy of the Company”.

In it, she requested, among other things, a change in the decision on the capital injection and debt relief of the Company, which would allow the bankruptcy application to be withdrawn. The document was addressed to the president of the board of the Industrial Development Agency SA, the ministers of industry, development and technology, and family, labor and social policy. Chemar, a Kielce company with a 70-year history, currently deals mainly with steel casting and employs about 140 people. At the peak of its activity in 1973, over 5,400 people worked there.