Statement from Minister Peter Burke on Aughinish Alumina

Statement from Minister Peter Burke

Friday, 24 July 2026

The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke said:

“I have received the report on the review of alleged breaches of sanctions by Aughinish Alumina. The report has been shared with the European Commission this morning (Friday 24th July).

I can confirm that no adverse findings have been determined in relation to the export of alumina to Russia by the company.

The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment is the national competent authority for enforcing certain aspects of trade and export sanctions.

The Department’s independent review has assessed the information contained in the OCCRP/Irish Times articles of the 23rd of March and subsequent media coverage, in the context of potential leakage of Alumina from Limerick into military supply chains.

The Department has also sought information from other bodies within and external to the State and has engaged with the company itself in the conduct of this review. The Department has engaged with other jurisdictions including Sweden and Ukraine and conducted its own research, and no evidence corroborating the media assertions could be found.

While the media articles allege that alumina from Limerick may be part of purchases made by a company named ASK on behalf of Russian military contractors, it is relevant to note that the articles include a statement that the investigating journalists “could not track the final destination of a specific batch of Aughinish’s alumina”. My Department has made every effort to substantiate these claims. However, there is a lack of verifiable internal trade data within Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. No information of a sufficient evidentiary level is currently available to confirm the assertions that alumina from Ireland is entering the supply chain of Russian military contractors. The company has provided data stating that no alumina produced in Limerick is used for military purposes, and is solely used in the production of aluminium for export from Russia. However, this cannot be independently verified by the Department.

My Department will continue to monitor events and assess any further information or reports of potential sanctions breaches that can be examined and verified, and will act accordingly. We will continue to work with the European Commission, relevant authorities within Ireland and other authorities throughout the Member States and Ukraine to enforce sanctions. The Irish Government stands in lockstep with Ukraine in its defence of its borders and of its people from the illegal war of aggression that it is confronting. I thank our Ukrainian partners for supplying my Department with information available to them.

Now that the review is complete, my officials have submitted the report setting out the findings to their counterparts in the European Commission responsible for EU sanctions. The matter is now with the European Commission for its consideration.”