The Saviola group rises to 74.9% of the capital of Rheinspan, a German company specialized in the production of panels for the furniture industry. The operation takes place three years in advance of the call option scheduled for 2026. After the joint venture announced in December 2019 between the two properties and the subsequent closing signed in June 2020 which divided the shares 50% between the Nolte family and the Saviola group, an agreement was signed to increase the Italian company’s stake by a further 24.9 per cent. We are now awaiting definitive approval from the Antitrust Authority, but to all intents and purposes Saviola will be responsible for the unitary management of the company.
«It is a further step towards internationalisation. We are convinced that in Germany there is no type of offer like ours with products with a strong connotation of Italian design. We have received positive feedback from German cooks in particular», comments group president Alessandro Saviola, who adds: «Today we invoice 60% in Italy and 40% abroad. One of our goals is to reverse these percentages over the next five years. For this reason we also have other M&A operations in sight in Europe». As far as investments are concerned, Saviola points out that a 20 million euro production line for faced panels has just started up at the Germersheim plant. «The 2022-2026 industrial plan provides for 392 million investments: 52 in 2022», he explains.
Georg Nolte, from the family of the same name, underlined: «The last three years of cooperation have shown that in Saviola we have found the right partner for the future orientation of our chipboard plant. I am delighted that the now planned sale of shares represents another important turning point for the future of Rheinspan.
The Saviola group, based in Viadana (Mantova), specializes in the production of 100% recycled wood panels. With transformation technologies capable of treating all wood waste (packaging, processing scraps, broken furniture, building site materials, among others) and through the Eco-wood network it is able to collect 1.5 million tons of used wood that fuel the production process. Saviola has 14 factories around the world, 1,500 collaborators and had a turnover of 750 million euros in 2021. «Revenues for 2022 amount to 850 million», confirms the president: «Driven in part by the increases in raw materials».
Thanks to these results, the company has decided to award 1,500 euros net to employees, in payroll from 10 January 2023, after the additional bonus last June.