Industry

After learning that the Chinese company Hithium Energy has abandoned its intention to come to the Basque Country and bet on Navarre, the president of the Buru Batzar Bizkaia, Iñigo Ansola, has said that it will not enter the territorial competition.

Maria Chivite, who, together with Spanish President Pedro Sánchez and the directors of the Chinese multinational, has formalized the announcement made yesterday in Madrid, has stressed that work is being done on the agreement "prudently", among other things, because the location of the plant remains to be decided. In any case, Hithium's choice of Navarre is a sign of Navarre's commitment to energy and job creation policies, as well as Hithium's desire to expand to Europe.

A summary, in two words, of what will be news in the Present today.

The company has maintained the 301 redundancies and the closure of the Amurrio steelworks. However, it has improved the conditions for leaving the company. Accordingly, the Commission has decided, by a vote, to extend the consultation period in order to examine the offer, consult with the staff and decide whether or not to accept it.

The workers in the Amurrio workforce started more stops last night, coinciding with the decisive meeting between the management and the committee to discuss the Employment Regulation Dossier (ERE), which ends today if there is no agreement or no extension.

On Tuesday there will also be a 24-hour stoppage, and from Wednesday to Sunday there will be four-hour stoppages in each shift.

Hundreds of people called by the works council have taken to the streets to protest the closure of the Sidenor lamination train in Azkoitia and the transfer of 36 workers to Reinosa (Cantabria). 

The machine tool market is nearing completion and, although it is a provisional balance sheet, with 39,000 visitors, organizers have highlighted the success of this year's "resilience" edition.

The steel group has decided to unify the production of lamination trains in Gipuzkoa and Cantabria, so that 36 of the 250 workers working in Azkoitia will be transferred to the Reinosa plant.

PNV, PSE and EH Bildu have adopted a joint amendment calling for a serious industrial project and the participation of all actors involved.

The meeting, which will take place on Wednesday of next week, as the lehendakari has advanced, aims to "activate permanent monitoring mechanisms, strengthen coordination with all companies and clusters, and prepare a contingency package to be ready if the conflict in the Middle East continues for months." 

The Minister of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability of the Basque Government, Mikel Jauregi, has stated in Euskadi Irratia that Trump would have "difficulties" in applying the trade blockade to Spain because Europe is "a single market." He has stressed that Europe's strength is "in unity." Hala 

In a truly difficult international context, the machine tool sector is looking for fresh air far from a stagnant Europe and a rival China. With the US market as the main lung, the sector is focused on two main areas: India and MERCOSUR.

Companies participating in the International Machine Tool Fair will be able to demonstrate the solidity of the Basque industry and find new markets. 34 will present 3,350 innovative products and services, mostly machines. 

From 2 to 6 March, for five days, 1,503 exhibitors and more than 3,350 products will be present, and the international community will be highlighted in this edition, bringing together visitors from 70 countries. 

Sales also fell 6.3%, to 719.3 million. Hala, the company has stressed that the event, in the year marked by the "global market weakness environment", has been maintained thanks to a strategy based on "integrated model, geographical diversification and presence in various sectors and niches of high added value, which has helped to" mitigate the impact of tariff uncertainty " .