WILLEMSTAD - According to the director of the Curaçao Refinery (RdK) Marcelino de Lannoy, layoffs and tax holidays were not discussed during negotiations held so far with the Klesch Group.

Klesch Group of the American Gary Klesch is the candidate for the possible takeover of the Isla refinery after 2019.

De Lannoy hereby responds to reports that the Klesch Group would have indicated that approximately 200 employees would lose their jobs in the event of a takeover and that the group would be required to enjoy a tax holiday.

De Lannoy indicates that those issues have not yet been addressed.

Chairman of trade union Apri, Gherrel Remilia also said he was not aware of this. He indicated that soon the unions will meet with representatives of the Klesch Group to discuss the position of the employees. The union leader did not want to comment any further on this.

Earlier this month, RdK announced through a press release that the Klesch Group has been selected to exclusively negotiate a contract for the takeover of the refinery in the coming months. This makes Klesch Group the preferred candidate to take over the oil terminal at Bullenbaai and the Curaçao Refinery Utilities (CRU) power station after 31 December 2019.