British company Gallaher said it plans to cut about 250 jobs from its 10,000-strong workforce as part of a further restructuring of its European operations.
The company, whose brands include Silk Cut and Benson & Hedges, proposes to close the Schwaz cigarette and Fürstenfeld cigar factories in Austria during 2005 and to restructure production at its cigarette and cigar factories at Lisnafillan and Cardiff in the United Kingdom.
Gallaher also plans to reorganise some aspects of its distribution network.
The company will announce the exceptional charges and annualised savings, which it plans to achieve by the end of 2007, associated with these changes once the outcome of an employee consultation process is known.
Gallaher added that it remains committed to strengthening its remaining manufacturing facilities in Austria and Britain, through continued investment, to meet the requirements of the Western and Central European markets.
In an effort to grow its Eastern European and Developing Markets business, Gallaher plans to establish on-shore production where appropriate, and concentrate remaining output for Developing Markets in its factory in Poland.
In December the company, which holds around 50 per cent of the Irish cigarette market, reported a 10.7 per cent fall in sales in the 10 months to the end of October which it blamed on successive duty increases and the ban on workplace smoking.
AFP