Luxembourg-based Befesa S.A., a provider of byproducts handling and recycling services to producers of steel and aluminum, has appointed Javier Molina, currently chief executive officer of Befesa, to serve as the company’s executive chair. Asier Zarraonandia, currently vice president of Befesa’s Steel Dust Recycling Business, will take over for Molina as Befesa’s CEO. Additionally, Romeo Kreinberg, currently chair of Befesa’s board of directors, has been appointed lead independent director at Befesa and remains chair of the company’s Nomination and Remuneration Committee.
Befesa reports that these personnel changes are effective immediately.
In his new position, Molina will be the most senior executive in the group and the company’s main representative for regulators, authorities and shareholders. He will lead the implementation of Befesa’s corporate strategy, covering growth projects and the company’s Sustainable Global Growth Plan (SGGP) as well as its sustainability strategy, including C02 reduction plans and environmental, social and governance (ESG), the company says in a news release on the personnel changes.
In his new position as CEO, Zarraonandia, who developed and managed the company’s Steel Dust Recycling Business that represents about 80 percent of Befesa’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, will report to Molina. He will be responsible for the day-to-day management across Befesa’s business units and for all operations, including production, supply chain and commercial business. He also will be responsible to lead various growth projects in the business. In addition, Wolf Lehmann, currently chief financial officer at Befesa, will maintain his role and responsibilities and report to Molina.
Befesa says its renewed board of directors will lead the company over the next four years, including two new board members Natalia Latoree and José Dominguez Abascal. Both have experience in energy transition, ESG and technology development. The board includes six independent directors and three executive directors.
Additionally, Befesa’s board has established a Sustainability Committee to help strengthen the company’s commitment to sustainability. It will review the company’s sustainability plans on a quarterly basis.
Five-year growth plan
Befesa reports that it also is finalizing its five-year SGGP, and as part of this plan, the company aims to invest about 500 million euros in growth projects to seize opportunities that decarbonization and the increasing electric vehicle (EV) market are generating in the steel and aluminum industries. Befesa says it hopes this will enable the company to “target double-digit growth rates over the next five years.”
According to Befesa, the global steel industry is going through major transformations to decarbonize operations and meet carbon reduction targets for 2030 and 2050. Secondary electric arc furnace (EAF) steel production consumes about seven times less CO2 compared with basic oxygen furnace production. As a result, Befesa says steelmakers are investing in EAF steel production globally, which is expanding Befesa’s customer base for its environmental services. The company says trends in the aluminum industry toward decarbonization and the increase in EV production has fueled demand for secondary aluminum and salt slags recycling in Europe.
“I am very excited about this new chapter for Befesa,” Molina says. “Asier has been managing Befesa’s main business for the past 15 years very successfully and is my natural successor. Despite the current uncertainty in the global economy, we have a solid business plan based on strong fundamentals. We believe that decarbonization and the rise of electric vehicles will remain medium and long-term growth drivers and we are in a privileged position to be able to seize these opportunities in the markets that we know best.
He continues, “Our new Sustainable Global Growth Plan targets around 500 million euros in investments globally, balanced across new markets such as China and more mature markets such as Europe and North America. This will enable Befesa to continue its accelerated expansion, targeting double-digit growth over the next five years.”