Who to take over the Duralex glassware in Chapelle-Saint-Mesminin the Loiret,n judicial recovery since April 24 ? The candidates had until Friday noon to submit their offer to the Orléans commercial court. The only certainty at this stage is that a cooperative project has been submitted, and it is favored by local communities. A proposal put forward by employees to create a SCOP, a cooperative production company. But, it is far, very far from being done…
130 employees ready to become shareholders
This idea of Scop was in fact launched by the current director of the factory, François Marciano, and it is supported by the CFDT and Force Ouvrière. Nowadays, 150 employees out of 227 have already given their agreement, including 130 who would be ready to pay 500 euros each to constitute starting capital and become shareholders of the factory. With the hope of taking back the glassware for the symbolic euro – and that part of the debts will be staggered, if not erased.
This project has the support of local communities notably the Métropole d’Orléans and the Centre-Val de Loire Region which will help to find other partners and especially banks. Because taking over the Duralex factory is one thing, but for it to work and be viable, we will have to put at least 20 to 30 million euros on the table within three years. The company must in particular reconquer export markets and this requires time and a real strategy.
Objective: obtain a deadline from the commercial court
But time is running out: the next hearing is scheduled for this Wednesday, June 5 before the Orléans commercial court. The employees, supporters of the Scop, hope to obtain a one-month deadline which would allow them to refine and deepen their project. The departmental union of the CGT of Loiret is much more skeptical about this SCOP project and calls for a rally in front of the courthouse on Wednesday at 2 p.m., then for a march on Saturday June 15, at 2 p.m., from the Béraire space in La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin.
