Ence plans to allocate an investment of close to 80 million euros to projects that will promote the decarbonisation of the Principality of Asturias through its biofactory in Navia.
This was announced by the company’s president, Ignacio Colmenares, during the visit that the president of the Principality of Asturias, Adrian Barbón, has made today to the biofactory in Navia, the largest capacity of Ence in Spain.
Specifically, the company will allocate 30 million euros to promote fluff pulp from this facility in order to diversify production towards hygienic and absorbent components that until now have been imported from North America. With this initiative, which is expected to be implemented in September 2025, a smaller environmental footprint will be achieved, contributing to the sustainability of the entire production chain, as the fibres are natural, compostable and biodegradable.
In addition, through a total investment line of close to 50 million euros, the company will replace a line in the wood yard to improve the biofactory’s energy efficiency. This project will benefit from the energy efficiency line of the IDAE (Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving) for an amount of 13 million euros.
Generation of value from the Navia biofactory
The Navia biofactory generates a positive impact on the Spanish economy at all levels through the development of its activity. This is the conclusion of a recent study by the specialist consultancy Valora, which confirms the leading role of the Ence Group’s Asturian biofactory in the social and economic development of the Principality and, by extension, in the national economy.
Regarding the latter, the study determines that its activity translates into an economic impact on the national GDP of 840 million euros and the generation of 7,000 jobs between direct, indirect and induced.
The biofactory boosts activity indirectly in the industrial, forestry and logistics sectors, and indirectly in other sectors such as transport, commerce, hotels and catering, professional services and public services, acting as a catalyst in predominantly rural areas.
With regard to the Principality of Asturias and its industrial sector, the activity of the Navia biofactory generates an impact of 103 million euros in the Asturian manufacturing industry, that is, nearly 3% of the sector’s GDP.
It also mobilises, annually, more than 250 million euros in payments to suppliers to make all the purchases and investments necessary to maintain its activity. This means an important economic impact in different areas: 67 million euros in industrial purchases, 156 million euros in forestry purchases, 24 million euros in investments in assets and another 5 million euros in logistics activities.
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