Boliden, the Swedish parent company of Tara Mines in Co Meath, will temporarily suspend production and exploration operations within the next four weeks. The move will result in its 650 staff being temporarily laid off.
It went on to say: “The business is currently cashflow negative and the losses have been brought about by a combination of factors that have made this decision unavoidable. These factors include operational challenges, a decline in the price of zinc, high energy prices, and general cost inflation.” “This was not a decision we made lightly, but we simply have to stem the unsustainable cash outflow that we are currently experiencing, in order to safeguard the long-term future of the mine,” Nyström said.