Impact on Spain’s Economy
ICL Iberia, is a producer and supplier of potash fertilizer for agriculture and industry uses. The potash is produced from its two mines in Catalonia, Spain, located in Suria and Sallent.
In order to maximize its positive impact, ICL initiated a study to measure ICL Iberia Suria & Sallent’s contribution to Spain’s GDP and employment rate. The study, performed by the world-renowned professional services network of PwC in 2014-2015, used a robust, internationally proven, input-output methodology and delineated ICL Iberia’s contribution to the Spanish Economy at three distinct levels.
ICL’s Impact on Spain’s GDP
Direct economic impact: 40% of ICL’s direct economic impact, equaling € 111 million, is generated directly by the company itself, primarily through corporate profits and employee salaries and wages. The Company’s economic impact constitutes 0.011 % of Spain’s GDP and 11 % of the value added by the nonmetallic mineral extraction sector.
Indirect economic impact: In 2014 ICL Iberia bought products and services from more than 132 suppliers and made investments in Spain worth more than €66 million.
ICL expenditures and investments generated an additional € 146 million for Spain’s GDP, which constitutes 0.015% of GDP.
Additional economic impact: both wages and salaries paid by ICL Iberia increased consumption of goods and services, with a subsequent impact on the economy totaling € 19 million.
ICL’s Impact on the Employment Rate in Spain
In 2014, ICL Iberia generated 4,075 full-time positions (FTP), which accounts for 0.025% of full-time employees (FTE) in Spain.
In addition to the 765 workers employed directly, ICL Iberia is responsible for the creation of over 3,300 additional jobs in Spain – around 2,900 jobs are generated through the activity of the company’s suppliers which include 840 direct contractors; and around 400 jobs are a result of increased consumption from ICL and contractor employees. Therefore, every job in ICL Iberia creates an additional 5.3 jobs for the Spanish economy.
Impact on Local Level
- ICL Iberia accounts for 28% of all employment in the towns where it operates: Suria, Balsareny and Sallent; and 69% of employment in the mining and chemical industries in Bages County. These two industries are known to provide high added value and employ highly professional personnel.
- 98% of the company’s employees were born in the three counties surrounding the company’s facilities (Bages, Bergueda, Solsones).
ICL’s Impact on Municipal Revenues
ICL Iberia’s total payments to municipalities due to taxes, royalties and licenses, increased by 18% during the 2011 -2013 period and are a source of recurring revenues for local governments.
During the 2011 -2014 period, taxes grew by 15% in the municipalities of Suria, Sallent and Balsareny.
ICL’s Impact on the Balance of Payments
The export value of ICL Iberia’s products is € 193 million (for 2014) and constitutes 0.32% of exports in Catalan and 27% of export value of the non-metallic mineral mining Sector in Spain.
Upcoming closure of production activities at Vilafruns mine
Just prior to the publication of this report (July 2020), ICL announced its decision to halt production at the Vilafruns mine in Spain.
Mining at Vilafruns, originally scheduled to cease in 2015, was due to continue into 2021, when an infrastructure upgrade at the nearby ICL Suria mine was expected to be completed.
However, recent challenges, including current market conditions, COVID-19 related restrictions and a high level of operating costs at Vilafruns, have brought forward the planned closure. ICL is in parallel continuing to step-up production in the Suria mine.
