Photo: Patrice Lucas, CEO of the Verallia Group. Veralia inaugurates its The world's first hybrid oven is located at the Zaragoza plant. This new facility marks a significant step forward in the Group's decarbonization strategy and will reduce CO₂ emissions (scopes 1 and 2) by approximately 50%, with the potential to reach 60% depending on the energy mix. The plant, located in the municipality of Cuarte de Huerva in Zaragoza province, is one of the company's seven production centers in Iberia.
The opening ceremony, held on April 16, was attended by Patrice Lucas, CEO of the Verallia Group, and Paulo Pinto, general manager of Verallia Iberia.
This investment reflects Verallia's commitment to decarbonizing its operations to combat the climate emergency. Supported by a clear and robust CSR roadmap—now reinforced by the validation of the Science Based Targets (SBTi) towards the Net Zero 2040 goal—the Group aims to reduce its CO₂ emissions (scopes 1 and 2) by 46,2% by 2030 compared to 2019, and by 90% by 2040.
In this context, the Group is implementing a diversified portfolio of low-carbon fusion technologies across its network of plants. These include 100% electric furnaces (Cognac, France), traditional superpower furnaces (Chalon-sur-Saône, France), oxy-fuel furnaces (Campo Bom, Brazil and Pescia, Italy), as well as the Group's new hybrid furnaces, specifically the one in Zaragoza and a second one planned for Saint-Romain-le-Puy, France.
These pilot projects will allow Verallia's engineering teams to develop and optimize these technologies from a cost, efficiency, and operational perspective, as well as acquire the necessary skills for their management and maintenance. This will pave the way for the progressive deployment of decarbonized kilns across the Group in the coming years. The inauguration of the hybrid kiln in Zaragoza, which has now come to fruition, marks a milestone. Its development began in 2022 with a total investment of €63 million., This marks a new stage in this transformation.
Paulo Pinto, CEO of Verallia Iberia, highlights: “This new hybrid furnace represents a significant step forward for our operations in Spain and positions the Zaragoza plant as a prime example of industrial electrification applied to the glass sector. It will allow us to support our customers with greater capacity, more flexibility, and solutions with a lower carbon footprint, while maintaining the quality and service standards that define us.”
The Zaragoza plant
Located in Cuarte de Huerva, the Zaragoza plant is one of Verallia's seven production centers in Iberia and plays a key role in the Group's industrial footprint. In addition to the commissioning of the hybrid furnace, the center has undergone a significant modernization of its electrical infrastructure, as well as the installation of an oxygen production unit to support the hybrid smelting process. The Zaragoza plant employs more than 200 people, and the investment has been recognized by the Government of Aragon as being of regional interest, highlighting its economic and industrial importance to the region.
Paulo Pinto, general director Verallia Iberia.
