Manufacturing group Avingtrans has announced plans to close its plant in Walsall.

The listed company told the stock exchange today it had been affected by the steep decline in oil price and the resulting delays in making decisions on several projects.

Avingtrans, which is headquartered in Nottingham, designs, manufactures and supplies components and associated services to the global aerospace, energy and medical sectors.

Its Maloney Metalcraft arm, based in Aldridge where it employs 78 people, designs and fabricates equipment for petroleum production, gas processing, produced water treatment and aftermarket parts and services.

It is currently consulting with 41 manufacturing staff affected by the proposal which, if given the green light, would result in closure of the manufacturing operation in the first half of 2015.

Remaining staff, including design and administration, would be moved to a new location within the Walsall area.

Avingtrans said in the trading update: "At the time we announced our full year results at the start of October, we noted the sizeable task remaining to integrate Maloney and Metalcraft.

"The steep decline in the oil price, and the resulting delays in a number of project decisions, has presented the group with the need to implement an accelerated cost reduction program across the energy and medical division.

"This will involve the closure and sale of the Maloney Aldridge site which is already in progress.

"Following the resulting transfer of the design and engineering activities to new offices, manufacturing will be transitioned to an outsourced global supply chain, both lowering cost and improving logistics."