Befesa closed its 2024 financial year with revenues of €1.239bn, up 4.9% compared to 2023. Adjusted Ebitda surged to €213.4m, a 17% increase, whilst net profit reached €51m. Operating cash flow also saw a strong 30% increase, totalling €191.8m, enabling the company to reduce its net leverage to 2.9X--ahead of its target--and maintain a 50% dividend payout ratio at €0.64 per share.
Executive chair Javier Molina and CEO Asier Zarraonandia described the year as one of “resilience, growth and transformation.” In their joint letter, they emphasised how “strategic initiatives gained momentum” and how the company “not only delivered on [its] targets but exceeded expectations.” Their confidence in Befesa’s direction is reflected in a clear ambition: “We are confident of delivering another year of strong, double-digit Ebitda growth in 2025.”
Befesa provides essential environmental services to the steel and aluminium industries by recycling hazardous residues such as steel dust, salt slags and spent pot linings. Its steel dust business recovers zinc through the production of Waelz oxide, whilst the aluminium segment focusses on the recovery of aluminium concentrates and the production of secondary aluminium alloys. Befesa’s zinc-refining facility in the US is unique worldwide: it produces high-grade zinc from 100% recycled inputs, reinforcing the company’s circular economy credentials and environmental impact. In 2024, it recycled 2.2m tonnes of residues.
With 1,784 employees and 24 recycling plants, the company is present in countries including Germany, Spain, France, Turkey, Sweden, the US, China and South Korea. The company processes more than 2.2m tonnes of industrial residues per year, and reintroduces 1.7m tonnes of recovered materials into the value chain.
In 2024, Befesa advanced two key growth projects. The Palmerton plant in the US reached its hot-commissioning phase and is expected to significantly expand recycling capacity by 2026. In parallel, the Bernburg aluminium project in Germany remains a strategic priority. However, expansion in China has been paused due to weaker local demand, despite break-even performance at the Jiangsu site.
Operational improvements continued across the business, including the US zinc-refining segment, which is undergoing a structured turnaround to reach break-even by 2026. Befesa has also secured favourable zinc hedges through 2026, improving earnings visibility and stabilising returns. “Our ability to recover valuable materials from industrial waste positions us as a key enabler of sustainable steel and aluminium production,” said Zarraonandia and Molina.