The energy transition is also promoting industrial transition in Asturias. Companies dedicated to component manufacturing in the region renewable energy It will reverse two of the most notorious industrial closures recorded in Asturias in recent years. The first operation was initiated by solar panel company Exiom, which collaborated with energy company Iberdrola to produce photovoltaic modules at the facility that British multinational refractory products company Vesuvius has closed in Riaño, Langreo, now owned by the company. Windar wind energy components has taken a crucial step to take over the Alu Ibérica warehouses, the former factory of the aluminum multinational Alcoa in San Balandrán in the Avilés estuary.
The bankruptcy administrator of Alu Ibérica awarded Windar Renovables, owned by Aviles group Daniel Alonso. assets of former Alcoa aluminum factory for 20 million euros. Windar plans to expand its component manufacturing business for offshore wind energy production, where it is the global leader in facilities.
“This decision is important for two reasons. First, it allows for a definitive resolution of the consequences of the closure of the former Alcoa factory, which this company announced in October 2018, and secondly, it allows for the creation of new jobs. Minister of Ecological Transition, Industry and Economic Development Nieves Roqueñí, led by Windar Renovables He emphasized that the project “fits perfectly with the strategic priorities of the Government of Asturias in the field of ecological and industrial transition”.
It is not the first time that renewable energy sources have reversed the industrial closure in Asturias. In February this year, Asturian solar panel manufacturing company Exiom announced an alliance with Spanish energy multinational Iberdrola to establish a photovoltaic solar panel production facility in Langreo. This is a €20 million investment including the creation of 115 new jobs. To locate the plant, Exiom and Iberdrola decided to renovate the former Vesuvius plant in the Riaño industrial zone in Langreo. In 2019, the British multinational company Vesuvius decided to close its Asturian factory, which produces refractory products for the metallurgical industry, where 111 workers worked, and the facilities have not been used since then.
At the beginning of summer, the Exiom and Iberdrola alliance began renovating the former Vesuvius factory and is scheduled to start producing solar panels before the end of this year. Supporters emphasize that this will happen Turkey’s first large photovoltaic module production facility Spain This project, one of the first on an industrial scale in Europe, will contribute to the economic revitalization of mining regions.
The closure of the British multinational Vesuvius in Langreo and the American multinational Alcoa in Avilés caused great uproar and a strong movement of rejection in both regions. Now two Asturian companies in the new renewable sector will bring the factories out of darkness and fill them with activity again.