The Imerys group has never lost faith in the Greek economy, nor in the ability of the Greeks to overcome the crisis and return to economic stability and sustainable growth, Imerys President and Director General Gilles Michel said on Wednesday, in a meeting with journalists.
"Over the last two years we continued to invest in Greece. Our investments were made at an exceptionally difficult time for Greece and our decision was a clear vote of confidence...even more so today, we are certain that Greece is leaving the difficulties behind it and are examining further steps for strengthening our presence in the country," Michel said.
This confidence was shared by others, he added, while the recent visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to Athens aimed to reaffirm the confidence of the French people and French business community in the Greek economy's recovery.
Since acquiring the S&B industrial minerals group owned by the Kyriacopoulos faily in 2014, Michel noted, Imerys had invested 20 million euros a year in Greece. "We did not face any problems with our investment in Greece. The business was thriving and profitable, oriented toward exports."
Asked whether the capital controls imposed in 2015 had affected the group's decisions, Michel replied that only the prospect of a Eurozone exit for Greece had caused concern but this was now "behind us and we are now on a path for economic recovery."
"The conditions are much better and the economic and business environment is very friendly. What is needed is the implementation of investments," he said.
Imerys Greece is currently the largest producer of perlite intermediates and the biggest exporter of bentonite intermediates, using the processing plants and mines on the island of Milos. It recently acquired Kerneos, a world leader in high performance calcium aluminate binders, with nine plants and bauxite mines in Greece.