Metlen Charts New Future with London Listing and Breakthrough in Circular Metallurgy

Mytilineos presented the company’s broader transformation strategy, termed the "Big THREE Transformation".

At a pivotal Capital Markets Day held in London on Monday, Metlen Chairman and CEO Evangelos Mytilineos outlined the company’s ambitious plans for the future, announcing its imminent listing on the London

Stock Exchange (LSE) and unveiling a major investment program centered around sustainable metallurgy. Speaking to investors and analysts, Mytilineos opened with a personal note, declaring, “I have always been and remain an Anglophile,” a sentiment that underscored the company’s strategic decision to shift part of its financial identity from Athens to London. “We feel at home in London,” he added, emphasizing the importance of this move as Metlen evolves into a truly global player.

The decision to list Metlen Plc — a newly established UK-based entity — on the LSE reflects not just a desire for greater visibility, but a fundamental repositioning of the company’s corporate structure. Under the proposed plan, existing shareholders of Metlen S.A. will exchange their holdings for shares in Metlen Plc, which will become the group’s primary listed vehicle, while maintaining a secondary listing on the Athens Stock Exchange. Trading is expected to take place in euros, if regulatory conditions permit, despite the LSE’s primary trading currencies being sterling and the US dollar.

Mytilineos was careful to manage expectations about the move. When asked whether the listing would attract significant inflows from passive investors, he avoided speculation.

“We are not entering the LSE to watch our stock rise,” he said. “Our focus is on doing our work properly. If you mislead the market, you are finished.”

Beyond the listing, Mytilineos presented the company’s broader transformation strategy, termed the "Big THREE Transformation," designed to significantly increase earnings over the next four years. Metlen is targeting EBITDA between €1.9 billion and €2.08 billion by 2028, driven exclusively by organic growth rather than acquisitions. This ambitious plan rests on three pillars: reinforcing the company’s core businesses in energy and metals; expanding into new strategic sectors such as critical raw materials and defense manufacturing; and undertaking organizational reforms to create a more agile and efficient corporate structure.

A central part of this transformation is Metlen’s expansion into what Mytilineos described as "game-changing" sectors, particularly circular metallurgy. After years of dedicated research and development, Metlen is now ready to commercialize its proprietary technology for recovering valuable metals from industrial residues, achieving recovery rates of up to 99% with zero pollutant emissions. The technology, successfully piloted at the company’s facility in Thessaloniki, marks a breakthrough in sustainable industrial production, significantly reducing reliance on primary mining activities.

Metlen’s circular metallurgy operations will initially be based around two large-scale plants: one in Northern Greece and another at its Sometra site in Romania. The Greek facility will focus on producing approximately 33,000 tons of copper and nickel annually, while the Romanian site will begin with a production of 115,000 tons of zinc, with plans to scale up to 140,000 tons. In total, the two sites are expected to process around 510,000 tons of industrial waste per year. The resulting high-value products, including copper oxides, nickel oxides, cobalt, iron, metallic silicon, and manganese oxides, will position Metlen as a key player in the emerging market for recycled critical materials.
In parallel, Metlen is exploring opportunities in the recovery of rare and strategic elements such as germanium and scandium, vital for the semiconductor and high-tech industries.

According to the company’s projections, the circular metallurgy initiative alone is expected to generate approximately €220 million in EBITDA over a medium-term horizon, further cementing Metlen’s leadership in the sustainable resource sector. Analysts were particularly impressed by the company’s revelation that it had already mapped some 2,500 industrial waste sites globally, containing an estimated 1.5 million tons of valuable metals — a resource pool valued at close to $10 billion.

Looking ahead, Metlen’s focus remains squarely on operational execution. Mytilineos acknowledged that achieving the company’s ambitious targets would require internal changes, promising that detailed plans for the company’s new organizational model will be unveiled at the Annual General Meeting scheduled for June 3, 2025. He stressed that Metlen must evolve into a leaner, more flexible organization if it is to sustain its rapid growth and meet the complex demands of global markets.

Finally, in one of the most personal moments of the day, Mytilineos recalled the pivotal acquisition of METKA in 1999. With visible emotion, he described how he and his close associate orchestrated a silent takeover, convincing the majority shareholder to sell. The move laid the foundations for what Metlen has become today — a global player with a clear vision for the future.

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