Nokia chief confirms plant to close (AP)

HELSINKI, Finland - Nokia Chief Executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said in an interview published Thursday that the company will not change its decision to shut a mobile phone manufacturing plant in Bochum, Germany, despite widespread protests and possible damage to Nokia's image.

"Despite several efforts we have not found a sustainable solution for the Bochum factory," Kallasvuo was quoted as saying in an interview with Finland's largest daily, Helsingin Sanomat. "It's difficult to imagine that in talks with personnel we would find something new which can change our decision."

Last week, politicians, employees and local residents voiced anger at Nokia's decision to shut down the Bochum plant in the industrial Ruhr region with the likely loss of 2,300 jobs. On Tuesday, some 15,000 people in the town demonstrated against the company's plans, and surveys showed that many Germans would boycott products of the world's largest mobile phone maker.

In the interview, Kallasvuo said that the fate of the plant, which produces 6 percent of all Nokia's handsets, had been under company scrutiny for several years. He said production costs had become too high in Germany.

"This kind of solution is never cheap, especially not in Germany," Kallasvuo said, but declined to say how much the move will cost Nokia.

Kallasvuo said he was surprised by the German reaction to the decision.

"We didn't get our message through well enough in the beginning," he told the newspaper. "Because the reaction was this strong, we could have done something better."

The average selling price of handsets -- a keenly watched indicator by markets -- has fallen about 35 percent in five years, according to Nokia which plans to move the operations of the Bochum plant to Romania or Hungary.

"Securing the competitiveness and profitability of Nokia will ensure the future of our investments," Kallasvuo said, adding that he expects competition in mobile markets to grow even fiercer.

The Finnish company was to release fourth-quarter and 2007 earnings later Thursday.

Nokia has sales in 130 countries. It employs some 130,000 people worldwide.

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