PreZero to acquire Ferrovial

PreZero International says it will acquire Ferrovial's waste disposal and recycling business in Spain and Portugal. The environmental division of Germany-based Schwarz Group and Ferrovial have signed an agreement regarding the purchase of Ferrovial's entire environmental services in both countries, including the environmental services, waste collection, waste treatment and recycling business. Ferrovial Environmental Services business in Spain and Portugal employs nearly 16,000 people at 140 locations.

Thomas Kyriakis, CEO of PreZero, says, "The planned acquisition is the next step in PreZero's expansion, with which we intend to further expand our activities in Southern Europe."

He adds, "Ferrovial is excellently established in the field of environmental management and ideally complements PreZero's portfolio. In the process, we anticipate valuable synergies and an additional starting point for the further development of the circular economy in Europe."

Ferrovial Environmental Services invests in R&D into the reuse of biowaste, plastic and compost, as well as projects in robotics, artificial intelligence and data analysis, PreZero says. In addition, the company operates the only plant in Spain capable of converting biogas from organic waste into renewable natural gas.

PreZero already operates in nine countries, but this acquisition would give the company a presence on the Iberian Peninsula for the first time.

"The waste disposal and recycling market in Spain and Portugal is currently in a state of upheaval,” Gerald Weiss, chief operating officer of PreZero International, says. “Together with Ferrovial's employees, we want to give this an additional boost and thus make a significant joint contribution to the protection of the environment and climate.”

Ignacio Madridejos, CEO of Ferrovial, says, "We are also very pleased to leave our Environmental Services business in Spain and Portugal in the experienced hands of PreZero, an international enterprise in waste and recycling management with the highest ESG (environmental, social and governance) standards."

Subject to the approval of the relevant employee representatives and the antitrust authorities, the acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of 2021, PreZero says.

PreZero presently has a total of around 13,000 employees in more than 280 locations in Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, Austria, Italy and the USA.