Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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273. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment in view of the concerns of employees at a company (details supplied) if he will outline the supports being provided by his Department and the industrial promotion agencies to secure the maximum possible level of employment in that company and protect the best interests of employees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40467/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Wellman International is a wholly owned subsidiary of Indorama Ventures PCL, one of the world’s leading petrochemical producers and a leading global manufacturer of wool yarns. The broader Indorama Group is based in Bangkok, Thailand.

As the Deputy will be aware, Wellman International Ltd, Mullagh, County Cavan produces polyester staple fibres, made primarily from recycled material, and the company entered Examinership on 3rd June 2025. In this regard, it is important to note that Examinership is a court-overseen process whereby a company is placed under court protection for a period of time in order to allow for the potential rescue and return to financial health of a company which may be in severe financial difficulty, but which is potentially viable.

My foremost concern, and that of the Government, continues to be for the potentially impacted employees and their families during this difficult and uncertain time.

Following the announcement by Wellman International to appoint an Examiner, IDA Ireland has implemented its job losses protocols which involves its established internal processes for dealing with situations of potential job losses with one of its client companies and engagement with impacted workers. The IDA remains in close contact with the company and worker representatives in ensuring that all appropriate supports are made available to impacted staff. This includes meetings with the leadership team on a regular basis actively exploring all avenues of opportunity for the site and impacted employees since the company announcement, acknowledging the examinership process is a court-supervised one where the aim is to endeavour to have the company emerge as a going concern.

The IDA’s regional team is partnering with local agencies to support impacted employees due to this announcement. These supports and/or initiatives provided by local agencies has been communicated to the site leadership and includes some of the following:

• Outplacement employment support services and potential training opportunities may be provided/facilitated by the company and/or other providers (ETBs/Skillnet, etc.) to support impacted employees.

• Provision of a detailed skills profile for the employees on the site, which with agreement can be shared with other potential site leaders that maybe recruiting. Wellman leadership have provided IDA with a full employee skills audit.

• IDA has agreed with the company and engaged with the examiner to help market the site and business across its global office network. Wellman has provided IDA with all necessary site details which can be shared with potential investors.

• IDA will provide at a local level introductions to the Department of Social Protection and Solas on social welfare services and employment support services to support impacted employees’ transition to new employment opportunities.

• IDA has engaged with its sister agency Enterprise Ireland and will connect will all relevant agencies on a regional basis to promote the site with wider marketing.

I can assure the Deputy that IDA Ireland and all relevant local agencies will continue to support and assist the impacted employees, as and when appropriate, having regard to the dynamics of the Examinership process.

More generally, the Border Region, which comprises counties Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Cavan and Monaghan, currently has 72 IDA client companies, employing 10,389 people. The FDI performance in the region has been relatively strong over the past five years with employment among IDA client companies increasing by 12%. The Border has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Life Sciences, Engineering, International Financial Services, Content, Consumer & Business Services and Technology. Within the Region, there are 950 people currently employed in Cavan across 10 IDA-supported companies.

IDA Ireland also has close working relationships with all key stakeholders across the region and is actively involved in initiatives to improve the value proposition for FDI working closely with regional stakeholders such as the Regional Skills Forum, Enterprise Ireland, Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT), Local Authorities and through collaborative involvement in the North-East Regional Enterprise Plan. IDA also engages with strategic industry networks including The Fintech Corridor, BORMAC (Border Region Manufacturing Cluster), and the Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre of Excellence (AMTCE), all of which play a key role in fostering innovation, workforce development, and enterprise growth.

IDA’s focus over the coming years is to build on the strengths and competencies of the region with a particular focus on high value manufacturing, services, research and development opportunities across several established clusters. Emerging technology trends have and will continue to create new opportunities across the region in areas such as data analytics, smart manufacturing, cybersecurity and new approaches to working such as co-working hubs. In this regard, Regional development continues to be at the centre of IDA’s new strategy, and both Government and IDA Ireland are committed to the pursuit of more balanced, compact regional development which can deliver complementary efficiency and equity gains, with the overall impact of helping to advance national development.

Nonetheless, our first thoughts remain with the employees impacted by the company decision and our Agencies will continue to work to support the workers affected in the period ahead, especially those pursuing alternative employment. Government is on hand to provide a range of supports for those affected, including assisting with appropriate training and development opportunities and income supports, as I have outlined, and the IDA continues to engage with the company on its future.