Development of a new TRICOR site - IKB ensures the successful interplay of sustainability, subsidies and overall financing
New plant will be a flagship project thanks to sustainable energy solutions and efficiency house standard
The TRICOR Group manufactures cost-efficient, safe and sustainable packaging solutions and is currently building a new plant in Weeze/Goch. “TRICOR's aim is to develop one of the most modern and sustainable plants for heavy-duty corrugated board,” explains Georg Feltes, Project Executive & General Manager of the plant. The focus is on the consistent use of sustainable materials such as waste paper and the promotion of climate-friendly processes and energy solutions. Above all, this includes generating electricity for the company's own systems and machines.
The future plant for the production of corrugated board covers 130,000 square meters. The building of the new plant achieves a high efficiency standard (EH 40) and will therefore produce only low emissions. More than 200 employees will work there. Production is scheduled to start in the third quarter of 2025. In addition to investments in buildings, machinery and innovations, the company is also investing in renewable energies and energy efficiency. A photovoltaic system with an output of 3.3 megawatts and four combined heat and power plants will cover almost all the energy requirements of the machinery and minimize heating requirements in winter and cooling requirements in summer. The Group underpins its high standards of sustainability and climate-friendly transformation through recognized certification methods and the Gold Medal it received from EcoVadis, a leading platform for sustainability information. “We are very proud that these efforts have been recognized and awarded,” says Georg Feltes.TRICOR has been dealing with sustainability goals and methods for a long time and has bundled these findings into a comprehensive sustainability strategy. For this reason, verifiable sustainability and environmental certificates such as FSC® C122169, EMAS or ISO 14001 are also used, because such a long-term orientation offers added value for customers and employees. The holistic consideration of many stakeholders and levels of action thus enables long-term entrepreneurial success and focuses not only on the environmentally friendly design of the business model but also on the economic perspective.
Financing possible thanks to clever combination of funding and loans
The total investment of € 170 million in the sustainable plant was financed - minus the equity used - via development loans from KfW and NRW.Bank. IKB acted as a subsidy advisor and also provided a significant portion of the financing itself as a lender. In addition, IKB supported TRICOR in the design and implementation of a company-wide ESG strategy.
This successful combination of practiced sustainability standards, externally confirmed certificates, funding from public development banks in particular and a loan from IKB Deutsche Industriebank makes the site development in Goch an exemplary project for the transformation of companies in NRW. “A key factor here was the preparation of sustainability data and the creation of transparency, as intended by the CSRD,” explains Alexander Dadaschev, Director of ESG Funding Advisory at IKB.
Sustainability and profitability complement each other
It is precisely this - often complex and lengthy - interaction that pays off, because not only is the financing secured through favorable interest rates and repayment subsidies, but modern jobs and added value are created in NRW. “Sustainability is an integral part of the economy in such examples. Positive environmental effects pay off economically here,” emphasizes Alexander Dadaschev.
Fin.Connect.NRW would like to contribute to highlighting these connections between sustainability, funding and overall financing and encourage imitation through good practice examples.
Further information can be found at https://www.tricor.de/neues-werk-in-weeze/-goch
