FINE GAEL’S FOUR members of the European Parliament have said they are deeply concerned by reports that a Russian-owned alumina refinery in Co Limerick may be supporting the illegal invasion and occupation of Ukraine. 

The Aughinish Alumina plant is Europe’s largest alumina refinery and employs 450 people on its 222-hectare site, located close to the Shannon Estuary towns of Foynes and Askeaton.

It is owned by Rusal, a metals company headed by Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, who was sanctioned by the UK government in 2022. 

In a joint statement, MEPs Seán Kelly, Maria Walsh, Regina Doherty and Nina Carberry said they were “deeply concerned” by reports suggesting that alumina exported from the plant “may ultimately be supporting Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine”.

An investigation by a number of European media outlets, including The Irish Times, claimed that alumina shipments from the Limerick plant were converted into aluminium in a number of smelting factories in Russia.

The aluminium was allegedly sold on by a Moscow-based aluminium trader to a range of weapons manufacturers.

The amount of alumina produced in the plant that is exported to Russia has been a subject of debate this week, after The Irish Times reported it was 83%.  

On Tuesday, Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke said the true figure was around 45%. He also said his department was carrying out an investigation into the refinery.

The MEPs said that reports relating to Aughinish “are serious” and that they welcomed the news that they are being investigated.

“This is vitally important to ensure that we have the fullest possible picture of the situation, and the investigation should be completed as soon as possible,” they said. 

“If it is established that material exported from Ireland is contributing, directly or indirectly, to Russia’s capacity to sustain its war against Ukraine, then that must be taken with the utmost seriousness.”

Last week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin argued against sanctioning the Aughinish Alumina, saying such a move would have more negative impacts on the EU than on Russia, and that it would costs people their jobs at the Limerick plant.

Sinn Féin spokesperson for enterprise and employment, Rose Conway Walsh TD, has today called on the government to “urgently establish the facts regarding Aughinish Alumina’s exports”.

“It is simply not good enough for Minister Burke to say the Government has ‘no information’ that shows that the plant’s exports to Russia are being turned into the weapons of war that are potentially being used to kill innocent Ukrainian civilians,” she said.

Conway Walsh said that protecting jobs at Aughinish “is essential” and that the plant’s importance as an employer in the area “should not be understated”. 

She said the government “cannot allow workers and their families to be caught in the middle of this” but added that “protecting jobs cannot be used as an excuse to avoid legitimate scrutiny”.

With reporting from Niall O’Connor