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Slate Quarries of Trélazé hit by the crunch

Slate Quarries of Trélazé hit by the crunch

Published on 02 March 2009 - Updated 22 December 2010
Cet article date d'il y a plus de 16 ans

In March 2009, the Société des Ardoisières d’Angers Trélazé, which is the last slate company in France still in business, will be closing one of its two quarries, thanks to the crisis in the building trade. Some fifty jobs will be lost within two years.

The Trélazé Slate Co., which was given "Living HeritageEnterprise"status last May, has a reputation for its superlative quality slates, used on the Loire châteaux and elsewhere including other historical monuments like the Louvre, Les Invalides and Versailles.

70% of its sales nowadays are for public contracts - roofing for high schools, colleges, or low-cost housing - which has the advantage of preserving the Loire Valley's identity in its buildings. The firm is trying to develop the market for the stone - schist - in the urban landscape (paving stones, coping stones, or broken slate for gardens, ground cover, and beautification of urban features such as roundabouts).

The Living Heritage Enterprise label, awarded by the Ministry of the Economy, Industry and Employment, was set up to celebrate French businesses with outstanding craft or industrial know-how.

Their distinctive features are: