The European Investment Bank (EIB) has granted SAICA a EUR 250 million loan for the construction of an energy recovery plant and a recycled paper mill.

Part of the loan will be used to finance the construction of an energy recovery plant at SAICA’s paper production complex in El Burgo de Ebro, Spain. The plant will have an annual treatment capacity of 500 000 tonnes of waste from recycled paper production in SAICA’s paper mills in the region.

This investment will improve the management of waste from recycled paper production. The project will also bring an environmental benefit by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from landfill waste and replacing part of the power in the grid with renewable – mostly biomass-generated – energy.

Another part of the loan will serve to finance the recycled paper mill for the production of packaging that SAICA is building in Partington, United Kingdom. This project comprises recycled paper production equipment and a power plant consisting of a waste-to-energy unit and a highly efficient CHP facility that will produce heat and power for the paper production process and surplus electricity that will be sold to the national grid.

The project will encourage paper recycling in the region, leading to a higher waste paper collection rate. The plant will be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities for complying with emissions control standards. Using recycled fibre as a raw material will help to mitigate climate change by replacing fossil fuel-based packaging with renewable recycled paper and cardboard materials.

This is the fourth loan that the EIB has signed with the SAICA group. 

Background information:

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the European Union’s long-term financing institution promoting the EU’s objectives. Founded in 1958, it operates in the 27 EU Member States and more than 130 other countries around the globe. Its financing operations are mounted in the framework of well-defined EU policies. The EIB’s financing priorities include environmental protection and support for sustainable communities in the form of investment helping to improve people’s surroundings, reduce pollution in our cities and foster social wellbeing.