EU’s investors back Aurubis growth

Aurubis has signed an agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) for a EUR 200 million loan towards scaling up metal recycling and environmental protection at its Hamburg, Germany plant.

The five-year funding is also helping to expand the tankhouse at Aurubis’ Bulgarian production site to boost cathode production to cover growing European demand for copper.

Greater capacity

Aurubis’ new facility in Hamburg, due to begin operations in the coming fiscal year, will process around 30 000 additional tonnes of recycled material along with a larger amount of complex internal smelting intermediates.

‘With the EIB, we’re gaining a strong European partner to support our strategic investments in a sustainable future,’ says Steffen Hoffmann, chief financial officer at Aurubis. ‘This financing commitment acknowledges the social relevance and outstanding quality of our investment projects.’

Strategic funding

Nicola Beer, vp of the EIB, says securing critical raw materials like copper and expanding recycling activities in Europe are essential to Europe’s resilience, sustainable development, and industrial competitiveness.

‘Copper is the hidden backbone of our modern lives. It keeps the lights on in our homes and powers the smartphone in our pockets, while also driving innovation in electric cars and renewable energy.’

The loan represents the first EIB financing for the sector since the adoption earlier this year of a strategy to secure Europe’s access to critical raw materials earlier and supports the rollout of the Critical Raw Materials Act.