- The EIB financing will be used to improve the efficiency of Cosentino’s factories in Almería, Spain.
- The company based in Andalusia will step up its research, development and innovation (RDI) by applying technology to develop new sustainable products.
- Cosentino Group will also expand its renewable energy sources and improve its recycling processes.
The EIB will provide a €120 million loan to Cosentino Group, a global leader in the design and manufacture of innovative and sustainable surfaces. With the support of the EU bank, the multinational company will finance its innovation and sustainability strategy, focusing on key areas such as the circular economy, decarbonisation, energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. These investments are in line with the EIB’s objectives of supporting innovation, climate action and environmental sustainability.
The agreement signed will help Cosentino Group to step up its research, development and innovation activities in innovative technologies designed to increase production efficiency through the automation and digitalisation of processes and robotisation. This will open the way for technology to recycle waste from production materials and for new renewable energy generation capacity for its own use. In its new Dekton® production line, the company will use its innovation process for the use of cleaner alternative fuels in the future.
The investments will be made in the facilities in Cantoria, a municipality of Almería where the Spanish multinational began and still operates, and will run until 2025. This is also where the company’s headquarters are based, as well as eight production facilities and its RDI centre.
EIB Vice-President Ricardo Mourinho Félix said that “As the EU climate bank, we are pleased to be supporting Cosentino Group’s investment in new technologies to improve the sustainability of its products and processes. This project will help to decarbonise its activities and improve circularity, and is thus fully in line with the objectives set by the EIB’s Climate Bank Roadmap. This agreement not only represents an investment in an EIB priority area such as innovation and digital and human capital, but also demonstrates our continued support for economic growth and employment in a cohesion region.”
President of Cosentino Group Francisco Martínez-Cosentino Justo said that “this new financing provided by the EIB will enable us to push forward with our ambitious sustainability plan, which aims to strengthen decarbonisation efforts, the commitment to clean and renewable energy, and the broad transition towards a more sustainable model. Together with our own investments already planned for the coming years, we hope to make Cosentino an international benchmark in industry for circularity, energy self-sufficiency and environmental performance, which will all be key to competitiveness in the future.”
Positive impact on employment in Andalusia
The EIB-financed investment plan will consolidate the Spanish multinational’s competitiveness and its leading position in the sector, enhancing its ability to develop high value-added products and services. This will contribute to long-term economic growth in Spain and the European Union, and have positive effects for people in the surface industry value chain.
The plan will have a significant impact on employment opportunities in the area. According to the EIB’s calculations, temporary employment for around 200 people a year will be created during the implementation phase. This comes on top of the estimated 135 new permanent jobs in production that will be created thanks to the investments.
As the project is located in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, which is an EU cohesion region, it contributes to the EIB’s cohesion and regional development objectives. These are to prioritise projects in regions with a gross domestic product (GDP) per capita below the EU average.
Second EIB loan for Cosentino Group
Cosentino Group has been working with the EIB since 2016. Prior to the newly signed credit line, the EU bank had previously financed the Spanish multinational’s research, development and innovation strategy through a €70 million loan for innovative manufacturing and logistics systems.
Background information:
EIB and energy security
Over the past decade, the European Investment Bank Group has channelled almost €100 billion into the EU’s energy sector. These timely investments are now helping Europe weather the crisis triggered by the abrupt cut in Russian gas supplies. In the first nine months of this year alone, the EIB has signed financial support totalling more than €8.3 billion for projects in energy efficiency, renewables, electricity and storage inside the EU, thus helping strengthen the resilience of the European economy.
In October, the EIB’s Board decided to raise the Group’s clean energy financing volumes to unprecedented levels in support of the REPowerEU objective of ending Europe’s dependency on Russian fossil-fuel imports. An additional €30 billion will be invested over the next five years, on top of the EIB’s already robust support for the energy sector in the EU. It is estimated that the dedicated REPowerEU package will mobilize an additional €115 billion in additional investment by 2027, thus making a substantial contribution to Europe’s energy independence and the EIB Group’s target to mobilize €1 trillion this decade in climate financing.
Find out more about the EIB’s energy support here and the latest energy projects we financed here.
About Cosentino Group
Cosentino Group is a global, family-owned Spanish company that produces and distributes high value innovative surfaces for the world of architecture and design. As a leading company, it works alongside its clients and partners to provide solutions that offer design possibilities and value, and inspire people’s lives. It is able to achieve this through its pioneering, leading brands in their respective segments, such as Silestone®, Dekton® and Sensa by Cosentino® — all technologically advanced surfaces for creating unique spaces and designs for the home and public areas.
The group’s development is based on international expansion, an innovative research and development programme, respect for the environment and sustainability, its ongoing corporate commitment to society and the local communities in which it operates, training, equality, and occupational health and safety.
Cosentino Group distributes its products and brands in more than 110 countries from its headquarters in Almería (Spain). The group is present in 40 countries and has subsidiaries or own commercial assets in 30 of them. It has eight production facilities (seven in Almería -Spain- and one in Brazil), one smart logistics centre in Spain, and over 140 commercial and distribution facilities worldwide. More than 90% of Cosentino Group’s turnover is generated in international markets.