With a message of continuity in its growth trajectory, but also a clear acknowledgment of the challenges faced by the group, Evangelos Mytilineos outlined the next phase for Metlen in his address at the General Shareholders’ Meeting.

The company’s chief described 2025 as a milestone year in Metlen’s transformation into a strong international industrial and energy group, stressing that despite pressures from an unstable geopolitical and economic environment, the company maintained its growth momentum, strengthened its strategic position, and is now entering a new investment and business cycle.

The Executive Chairman of Metlen reiterated management’s commitment to the medium-term EBITDA target of €2 billion, while for 2026 he projected that the company would achieve a full recovery in operating profitability, with EBITDA between €1 billion and €1.15 billion, potentially reaching a new historic high.

As he noted, energy markets remained vulnerable to geopolitical developments, while metals markets were affected by shifting supply chains and the broader restructuring of the industrial landscape. Despite these pressures, Metlen’s diversified strategy proved resilient, enabling the company to effectively manage uncertainty and continue investments in both energy and industrial sectors.

At the financial level, the group recorded strong revenue growth, reaching €7.1 billion, driven by the positive performance of its core activities. However, Mytilineos acknowledged that profitability was affected by execution issues in certain energy projects, as well as the timing of portfolio rotation in renewable energy assets. He stressed that these challenges led management to strengthen corporate governance, improve project execution discipline, and upgrade planning processes.

He personally assumed responsibility for the delays and difficulties that arose, noting that some issues could have been addressed earlier. However, he emphasized that the company implemented organizational changes, strengthened accountability, and improved internal processes in order to build a stronger foundation for the future.

Referring to the growth strategy, he stated that energy and metals remain the two main pillars of the group, alongside the development of new activities in circular metals, defense, infrastructure, and METKA.

In the energy sector, Metlen strengthened its position as an integrated energy company, expanding its activities while Protergia progressed toward its market share targets. The company’s presence in natural gas and LNG remained critical for regional energy security. At the same time, the 330 MW storage project — one of the largest standalone storage systems in Europe — is currently in commissioning and is expected to become operational in Q3 2026.

The group is also executing 87 construction sites across 11 countries, including photovoltaic parks, energy storage projects, and infrastructure for networks and data centers.

In the metals sector, Mytilineos highlighted the strategic importance of investments in alumina and gallium. The expansion of the alumina refinery from 865,000 tons to 1.25 million tons is underway, with full operation expected by the end of 2027. The pilot gallium unit is already operational, and the main facility is progressing toward completion also in 2027.

He also made special reference to circular metals, noting that the pilot unit is 65% complete and is expected to become operational in Q1 2027, producing oxides of copper, nickel, cobalt, and zinc.