AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW found that there was no evidence of alleged breaches of sanctions by Aughinish Alumina in Co Limerick, after reports by the Irish Times suggested there might be.

The newspaper drew on leaked documents that alleged the plant was shipping alumina to smelters in Russia for military purposes. These smelters turn the alumina into aluminium.

The plant is owned by Russian oligarch and Vladimir Putin ally Oleg Deripaska.

While reporters weren’t able to track the final destination of a specific batch of Aughinish’s alumina, their work prompted the Department of Enterprise to investigate.

From the outset it said any review could be inconclusive and the buck may be passed European Commission to make a decision.

That’s what happened today.

As enterprise minister Peter Burke put it: “Suspicion is not evidence, and when you’re dealing with sanctions, you need a legal basis.”

While “no adverse findings” were determined in the review, this was due to a lack of information, so the Department could not rule out foul play either.

Burke said there is a lack of verifiable internal trade data within Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. 

He said the review sought information from other bodies “within and external to the State”, as well as Aughinish itself.

The company provided the department with data stating that no alumina produced in Limerick is used for military purposes, and is solely used in the production of aluminium for export from Russia.

“However, that’s coming from a Russian entity,” Burke told RTÉ Radio One’s Morning Ireland.

Third-party verification

Aughinish now says it will allow “independent, third-party verification by a competent global company”, which will monitor the alumina flows from the plant, as well as subsequent exports out of Russia of the aluminium produced from it.

The company pledged to participate in any framework that would enhance traceability. 

It’s unclear whether the European Commission will wait to see the results of the new third-party verification process before making a decision, or base its decision off the government’s review alone.

The findings of the review have not been published. The public can only read the minister’s statement, which is light on detail.

Burke said this was because data shared by other European countries was confidential, and information given by Aughinish Alumina “is sensitive to their commercial activity”.

There were “security concerns” raised by the Attorney General too, he said.

What will happen to Aughinish?

If the European Commission finds that parent company Rusal has breached sanctions, trade restrictions could be imposed.

According to Aughinish, this would have greater consequences for the Irish and wider European economy than on Rusal or Russia.

It said Rusal currently produces around four million tonnes of aluminium annually, and 80% gets exported to countries outside Russia.

It also said that if Rusal loses its alumina source in Ireland, it will just get it from China or India instead.

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Speaking on Tuesday, Tánaiste Simon Harris said he was conscious that workers at Aughinish are worried about what restrictions would mean for their jobs, but couldn’t provide any clarity.

The “timeline in terms of what the European Commission may decide to do is a matter for them,” he said.

He also told the Financial Times that there could be a way to keep the plant running, as the alumina is needed in Europe.

“There have been occasions where Europe has had to diversify supply chains. Europe and governments have to be able to do more than one thing at a time. There will be a need for alumina to be produced for the European market, full stop, end of [story],” Harris said.

“There’s an ability to produce alumina in Limerick. It’s not a bad starting point for various conversations,” he added.

Government politicians have repeatedly stated their support for Ukraine.

The Taoiseach visited Kyiv on Thursday, where he met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

During his latest visit to Ireland earlier this month, the Ukrainian president said he was “really interested in the results of this investigation”. He appealed to politicians to cut off the supply of raw materials to Russia, mentioning Aughinish by name.

Micheál Martin was upfront with him about the review’s limitations.