After the flint glass furnace went into operation in June 2020 at Wiegand-Glas‘ new glass plant in Schleusingen, Germany, a furnace for the production of amber glass containers was to follow in January 2022. Unfortunately, the company had to postpone the start of production of this furnace to the second quarter of 2022 for different reasons. As the older furnace at the Schleusingen plant went out of operation during the Christmas week, this significantly reduces the amber glass production capacity of the plant.
Exploding prices for energy and raw materials are the main driver
The supply and cost situation for raw materials and supplies have worsened dramatically, resulting in a considerable business risk. Furthermore, sickness rates are already extraordinarily high and the company is faced with a fifth wave of CORONA virus. This greatly increases the risk that regular operations can no longer be guaranteed and production lines have to be shut down.
Wiegand-Glas asks all of its customers, business partners and employees to understand this difficult situation. After weighing the risks, a regulated start-up in January would not be possible. The final new commissioning date depends a lot on the supply situation, the development of the recent wave of the pandemic and especially on the price situation on the energy markets.