Nova Austral unions in plea to Chilean government

Trade unions representing workers at the troubled Chilean salmon company Nova Austral have sent a message  to the government pleading not to let the business go under.

Nova Austral, which farms in southern Chile, is said to owe more than US $500m (£409m). The company employs 800 people directly and supports some 2,000 indirect jobs.

Nova Austral creditors are currently considering whether to accept a rescue package for the company – but their decision has been delayed several times.

Nova Austral presented its first draft restructuring plan back in early August and a series of adjournments and revisions have followed since.

A reply is now scheduled before Christmas. A message on the Oslo Stock Exchange  (the company has strong Norwegian links) said: “The meeting has been postponed from 5 December 2023 to 15 December 2023. In the meeting the creditors will vote on the Reorganisation Agreement.”

Meanwhile, the unions have sent a letter to the Chilean president Gabriel Boric asking his government to remove some of the sanctions that have been put  around the company.

The workers are saying that  some of the sanctions are disproportionate, excessive and unfair and contradict what some members of the government have said to the company and some of the staff.

They have told the president it is important not to punish the company,  because thousands of people would be affected if it is allowed to go under.

The company itself has blamed its problems on a series of “exceptional situations”,  arguing that some of them were outside its control.