Highly skilled workers losing their jobs at Silberline could miss out on other Fife opportunities because of delays in expanding the rail network, it has been claimed.
Labour councillor Colin Davidson is calling on transport chiefs to speed-up the introduction of a direct service between Leven and Rosyth, which is not slated until Christmas 2025.
It follows the announcement last week of the imminent closure of Leven’s Silberline factory with the loss of 100 jobs.
Employees at the facility could transfer their skills to jobs at sites like Babcock, Mr Davidson said.
But the delay in linking Levenmouth with Rosyth through a direct rail service could hinder this.
Claims rail link delays could cost jobs
Mr Davidson lead calls for Scottish Government intervention in the wake of the closure.
He said: “There are a number of jobs in Rosyth, at the dockyard, which will require specialist staff.
“Outgoing staff at Silberline have the skills required for these jobs.
“What we would like to see is the service opened up between Leven and Rosyth.
“At the moment, the train service goes via Kirkcaldy to Edinburgh. If that second service, via Rosyth, is opened up, people can travel directly from Leven to Rosyth.
“That would give them an opportunity to work for Babcock and at the dockyard.
“These highly skilled workers in Leven could look for opportunities at Rosyth and Inverkeithing, and establishing a transport link would help with this.
“We need the second service. We were promised it in June last year, and it now looks as if it is going to be December next year before it comes in.
“And we would like to see that service brought in earlier.”
No direct link expected until 2025
ScotRail’s Fife and Tay cities timetable, including services to Cameron Bridge and Leven, commenced in June.
Due to issues with trains and fleet availability, it included an interim timetable for Leven and Cameron Bridge which consists of an hourly service.
A spokesperson for Transport Scotland said: “ScotRail is working hard to make more trains available, which will then allow the introduction of two trains per hour to Levenmouth – we expect this to happen next year.
“This will provide new direct connections from Leven to Dunfermline and Rosyth, and provide more journey options from Leven to Inverkeithing and Edinburgh.”
Silberline closure
Silberline produces industrial pigments and coatings used for a variety of applications, primarily car coatings.
The American company has run a factory in Leven since 1974, where around a quarter of its 450-strong global workforce is based.
They informed workers in April the future of the factory was in doubt.
Accounts for Silberline Ltd, for the year ending December 2023, show the pressures the business has been under.
The accounts reveal that turnover slumped from £19.8 million in 2022 to £16.4m last year. The business went from making a pre-tax profit of £153,000 to a pre-tax loss of £2.6m.
It follows an acquisition at the start of this year by German company Eckart, which also specialises in pigments.
Silberline sales in 2022 totalled $80 million. Eckart has approximately 1,775 employees worldwide, and had sales of €397 million in 2022.
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