THE Minister for Enterprise and Employment, Mr Bruton, has moved quickly to defuse the row between Continental AG and the Industrial Development Authority over the disposal of the Semperit plant in Dublin.
The Irish Times understands that talks are to take place late next week with the Cooper Tyre Company of Ohio about its possible acquisition of the plant.
Mr Bruton will travel to the United States to meet Cooper Tyre representatives next Friday.
The chief executive of the IDA, Mr Kieran McGowan, said on RTE's News at One yesterday that Continental was not willing to sell the Irish factory to "a fierce competitor" such as potential Korean buyers. While Semperit was trying hard to find a buyer it was only prepared to do so on certain terms.
It is understood Mr McGowan was referring to the company's decision not to sell some of its "proprietorial technology" - specialised manufacturing equipment - at the Semperit plant to a competitor as part of an overall deal. Instead, it would transfer the equipment to one of its other plants.
After meeting company representatives in Dublin yesterday, Mr Bruton said: "We recognise the company has business restrictions thee would apply in regard to certain proprietorial technology. But we have been assured by the company that they will participate with me in seeking to find a purchaser."
Departmental sources said later that the problem "is not seen as insuperable". Mr Bruton is anxious to move the agenda along because of the tight time constraints within which any takeover will have to take place. Production at the plant is expected to cease by December 6th.
The discussions with one interested buyer, the Cooper Tyre Company of Findlay, Ohio, are due to take place next Friday. Cooper specialises in customised tyres, particularly for "off the road" four wheel drive vehicles.
The US market is flooded with customised tyre products but it is a market that is still in its infancy in the European Union. The Cooper Tyre Company also has the advantage that it would not be seen as a competitor by Continental, which produces tyres for the standard saloon car market.
Redundancy payments at the plant are expected to create the first serious industrial relations problem in the closedown. The company says its offer of four weeks pay, based on average earnings, for each year of service, plus statutory entitlements, is a generous one.
It says the cost, £15 million, will also wipe out all the profits made by the company since it moved into the black in the early 1990s.
However, shop stewards at the plant said last night that the terms on offer were those already available to workers who had accepted voluntary redundancies and who might have gone on to find alternative employment.
Those employees who had "stuck with the company" and who faced compulsory redundancies deserved a more generous settlement.
The shop stewards and other union representatives met Mr Bruton, senior officials from his Department and two Government TDs from the constituency, Mr Jim Mitchell of Fine Gael, and Mr Joe Costello of Lab our, after Mr Bruton's meeting with management.
Ms Maria Farrell of SIPTU, on behalf of all the union representatives, said the Minister had taken on board fully their concerns.