EcoEridania Group, one billion from waste
From European leader in the disposal of medical waste – with a central role during the critical moments of the pandemic – to the conquest of industrial waste and end of waste. To perhaps even land on the stock exchange in the next few years as a giant in the sector. Andrew Giustini – founder and president of the parent company EcoEridania – tells a Truth&Business the ambitious growth project of a Group today made up of 16 companies which expects to close 2024 with at least 400 million in turnover.
Let’s start from the beginning: how was the EcoEridania Group born?
“It was born with my nature: even as a kid I was interested in creating value with an enterprising spirit, which at the time was the satisfaction of my friends. A vocation that I then declined in EcoEridania in 1988, from a small Ligurian company. However, I have never tolerated the dwarfism that permeates the regional entrepreneurial fabric, I aspired to something else. The first acquisition in 2006: we take over EcoTravel srl with its incineration plant in Sardinia, a company we already collaborated with. The 2010 crisis turns into an opportunity: we become the first investment of Fondo Italiano d’Investimento, which enters the company in 2011. From there begins a growth path of the group that supports my desire to become great thanks to the participation of two funds: Xenon in 2013 and, since 2018, Icon infrastructure which currently holds 75% of the group. Today we are leaders in Europe and second in the world in the medical waste sector and we are expanding into industrial waste and end of waste”.
Being a leader in the healthcare sector has led you to be on the front line during the Covid emergency.
“In hospitals, the principle of separate collection had essentially been skipped, practically doubling the waste produced: from 150,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes on an annual basis. Thanks to the network of partners and our capillarity on the territory we were able to network and manage the emergency. But having managed a pandemic in those circumstances, economically speaking, was a cost for us because we spent more than we collected in addition. This has led us to strengthen the structure: today we would be ready to face another pandemic, even with an economic return”.
In the last few weeks you have obtained financing for 340 million euros to be used entirely for M&A operations. You have already announced the first two acquisitions, are there more upcoming ones?
“A year ago we launched an ambitious growth plan we called “Twister”. Thanks to an investment program of 700 million over four years, the goal is to bring the turnover to over one billion with an Ebitda of 250 million euros in 2027. The forecast for 2024 is to close the balance sheet with around 400 million in revenues and 130 million in Ebitda. To do this, in addition to the stakes in Oda and Semataf, we have practically already closed three other acquisitions in the waste fuel production sector which we will announce in the coming weeks and which will conclude the first part of the acquisition plan. These are two companies in southern Italy and one in central-northern Italy which significantly strengthen our positioning in the end of waste sector”.
On the other hand, when is the second part of the acquisition plan planned?
“The idea is to use 2023 to consolidate this first round of acquisitions and use the first half of 2024 to identify subsequent targets. Realistically, the second tranche of acquisitions will arrive between the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025 to allow us to take a further step and explode the numbers starting from 2027”.
The growth plan is important. Is stock market listing also included in the EcoEridania Group programs?
“The premise is that I’m not the only party involved and any future plan will have to be discussed with the partners. Even considering that this company is attractive to investors as it is unique in the Italian panorama, given that there is no other player so integrated throughout the national territory, today the conditions are not there. But, at the end of the “Twister” project, compatibly with the market situation, I believe that EcoEridania could be ripe for a highly successful stock exchange listing. Also because 2027 could be the right time for my partners to exit their investment by maximizing revenues”.
Which sectors of the waste business do you think will become central in the near future?
“The recovery of rare earths and electronic waste will become central. Furthermore, a business will also be created for the disposal of the first solar panels and wind turbines installed which are reaching the end of their life, in which we are investing. But the future is the end of waste at 360 degrees: waste must become a value and everyone should get a benefit. That’s the direction and we are moving to create value from what is traditionally considered waste and therefore a burden. Rather, there is an all-Italian theme that should be tackled seriously”.
Which?
“That of the disposal plants. In Italy, to date, it is practically impossible to make new ones, so much so that our largest disposer is called export. As EcoEridania Group we have the will to build two waste-to-energy plants, but we have no idea of the timing and if we will actually be able to obtain the authorisations. It is clear that everything that can be disposed of in an alternative way must be done, but most of the waste must still be eliminated in the traditional way. And not doing it in Italy, however giving up value and the energy produced, because it is not possible to build waste-to-energy plants is a waste”.
Within the Group there is also the Insuperable EcoEridania Foundation.
“A project born from our values and our vocation to do for others, we teach by teaching inclusion and diversity. We have chosen to do good by creating this foundation which we manage as a company and which has an overall budget, including typical fundraising activities, of 2 million euros a year. Today we let 650 disabled kids play football and we have the best team in Europe”.