Chemical firm in administration

A Teesside chemical company which employs nearly 250 workers has gone into administration.

Artenius UK Ltd has its headquarters at Redcar and makes a chemical used in the food and drink packaging industry.

Administrator Deloitte announced 137 redundancies on Monday but said the company was continuing to trade as bidders were sought.

It comes soon after two other chemical companies announced they were closing production facilities.

Artenius, which has 242 employees, is a subsidiary of Spanish company La Seda de Barcelona.

The administrator said a separate division of the company's business had already closed after a restructuring and the company had been under increased costs pressure.

Seeking bidders

Daniel Butters, from Deloitte, said: "The company is continuing to trade while we seek to identify going concern bidders.

"Regretfully we have been forced to announce 137 redundancies today, mostly in respect of the already closed division.

"We are extremely grateful to the staff and management for their co-operation during this difficult time.

"We are working with the Job Centre and Insolvency Services to support employees wherever possible and are grateful for their assistance."

In recent weeks The Dow Chemical Company and Croda International have both announced they are to close production facilities at Wilton.