Aurubis finalizes Metallo acquisition

With the Metallo acquisition, the Aurubis Group, a leading global provider and recycler of copper and other nonferrous metals, is gaining a second location in Belgium that is in Beerse, with about 450 employees, in addition to its existing location in Olen, Belgium. It also is gaining a location in Berango, Spain, in the province of Biscay, which employs about 90 people.

The EU competition authorities issued approval of the acquisition May 4.

Roland Harings, Aurubis AG executive board chairman, says in a video released to all the company’s employees June 2, “A little over a year after the announcement, we can now welcome all of our Metallo colleagues to the worldwide Aurubis family. We will integrate the Metallo production sites to form an optimized production network of our plants in Hamburg, Pirdop [Bularia], Lünen [Germany] and Olen together with Beerse and Berango. This will lead to more than 1 million tons of recycling capacity for secondary material.”

Harings emphasizes, “This acquisition represents an important step in the implementation of our multimetal strategy. Our stated goal is to become one of the most efficient and sustainable smelter networks in the world.”

“I’m sure I speak for all Metallo employees when I say that we are very pleased to become part of Aurubis and to bundle our experience spanning a combined total of more than 250 years,” says Dirk Vandenberghe, CEO and director of Metallo. “Metallo specializes in processing recycling materials with low metal contents, with a focus on tin, lead, nickel, zinc and copper. We have a ‘zero waste’ approach—even as the compositions of the input materials become increasingly complex. As part of Aurubis, we want to continue processing all of the input materials into valuable products, making an important sustainability contribution as one company.”

“The Metallo-Aurubis merger is not just a very positive move for the two companies, it is great news for the recycling industry and Europe,” Patrick Verschelde, chairman of the board of directors of Metallo, says. “The add-ons of Metallo technologies and expertise to those of Aurubis will allow the expanded Aurubis Group to treat even more complex materials in order to return to the value chain base metals which are very much in demand in Europe.”

Aurubis is financing the purchase with borrowed capital.