Alstom and French government clash over future of Belfort plant

Alstom will go ahead with plans to shut down manufacturing at its Belfort plant in eastern France, its CEO told staff on Tuesday, setting up a confrontation with the French government which vowed “everything will be done” to prevent that. The French engineering firm, which makes the country's TGV high-speed trains and is 20 percent controlled by the state, said last week it would stop making rolling stock at Belfort, where its first steam locomotive was built in 1880. The move caused a political furor over the weekend and the government demanded he reconsider.

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Alstom and French government clash over future of Belfort plant