Boston Scientific announced today it plans to shut its manufacturing plant in Tullamore, Co Offaly next year with the loss of 240 jobs.
The company said the closure follows the acquisition of Boston Scientifics’ fluid management business in February by Avista Capital Partners.
It said Avista plans to transfer manufacturing of these products, which comprise about a third of the Tullamore factory's output, to its existing facility in New York State.
Boston Scientific plans to transfer the manufacture of its remaining products to its factory in Cork. The Tullamore plant will shut in March, 2009.
Boston Scientific, which employs more than 5,000 people in Ireland, said in a statement that it "remains strongly committed to Ireland"and its operations here.
"The company acknowledges and deeply appreciates the valuable contributions of its Tullamore employees" it said, adding that some staff would be offered the opportunity to redeploy to its other plants around Ireland.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen, in whose Dáil constituency the Tullamore plant is situated, said the decision to cut operations at the plant was regrettable.
"Boston Scientific has given excellent employment in Tullamore for many years and, while today's commercial decision is a blow for the Midlands, I am confident that given the highly skilled and motivated workforce in
Tullamore that we will see new investment attracted to the region.," he said.
"I can assure people that the Government and its agencies, including the IDA and Enterprise Ireland, are already working to attract such an investment", Mr Cowen said.
Fine Gael TDs for Laois/Offaly, Charlie Flanagan and Olwyn Enright, said the job losses were a "savage blow" to the area.
Mr Flanagan called on the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Mary Coughlan to give special priority to job creation in the Midlands region. "I would also ask Minister Coughlan to commission a study investigating why the Midlands is suffering more than any other area from rising unemployment, " Mr Flanagan said.
The Labour Party's enterprise and employment spokesman Willie Penrose said the closure of the Boston Scientific plant "will have a very serious impact locally".
He called on the Government to "start treating the unemployment crisis with the seriousness it deserves".
