CALEDONIAN Alloys, the aerospace metals recycler owned by US billionaire Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway, fell into the red ahead of the closure of its plant in Livingston in December.
The latest accounts for the firm show it made a $2.7 million loss in the 53 weeks to 3 April. It made a profit of $4.8m in the preceding 52 week period.
Turnover fell to $64.9m from $101m.
In the accounts the company noted that management announced restructuring plans for the firm in July.
It said: “This restructure resulted in the closure of its Livingston reversion site … which constituted a significant portion of total reversion activities for the company as a whole. The site was still online and active until 1 December 2016 and ceased operating on this date.”
The accounts do not state how many people were employed at the Livingston plant when it closed.
Caledonian Alloys had an average monthly number of 104 employees in the latest financial year, down from 109 in the preceding year.
The company said it expected a significant portion of the reversion activities previously completed at Livingston would be done at its Hereford site. Operations at the site have remained stable and there are no plans to close it in the foreseeable future.
Directors noted the firm was affected by a significant fall in the price of aluminium and nickel in the latest financial year.
The business was sold by entrepreneurs Hugh Stewart, Ron McNab, and Doug Sked to Oregon-based Precision Castparts in 2007, when it was making a £17m profit.
Berkshire Hathaway bought Precision Castparts in 2015 in a $37bn deal.
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