Corporate brand
UnclaimedSpanish producer of eucalyptus cellulose and renewable energy from biomass.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Ence Energía y Celulosa, commonly known as Ence, is a Spanish industrial company whose principal activities are the production of eucalyptus cellulose and the generation of renewable electricity from biomass. It is headquartered in Madrid and operates production assets and forest-management activities in Spain, while selling much of its pulp output to customers in Northern Europe. The company describes itself as both a pulp producer and a renewable-energy business, combining industrial forestry, cellulose manufacturing, biomass fuel procurement and power generation. The company originated as a publicly owned Spanish cellulose business associated with the former Instituto Nacional de Industria. Its earlier corporate identity was Compañía Nacional de Celulosa. During the privatization of Spanish state-owned industry, the business was progressively transferred to private ownership. The first 49% was privatized around the time of its 1990 Madrid Stock Exchange listing, and the remaining 51% was privatized in 2001. Following the initial public offering, the business adopted the Grupo Ence name and later became known as Ence Energía y Celulosa. Ence's pulp operations are based principally at factories in Pontevedra and Navia. These mills process eucalyptus wood into cellulose pulp, an intermediate material used by paper and tissue manufacturers. The company has been described as the European leader in eucalyptus cellulose manufacturing. Its pulp production reached approximately 1.2 million tonnes in 2019, with a substantial share exported to northern European markets. The business is therefore exposed to international pulp demand, wood and transport costs, energy prices, environmental regulation and the availability of sustainably managed eucalyptus resources. The second major business is renewable energy produced from agroforestry biomass. Ence operates or has operated biomass power facilities in locations including Huelva, Mérida, Ciudad Real, Jaén and Lucena. These plants use biomass rather than fossil fuels to generate electricity, linking the energy business to agricultural and forestry residues as well as to the company's broader resource-management capabilities. Ence has also been described as Spain's leading private forest manager. Its forestry activities support the supply of eucalyptus for pulp and involve the management of forest resources and associated environmental responsibilities. The company previously owned the 50-megawatt Termollano solar-thermal plant in Puertollano. That asset was sold in November 2020, leaving biomass generation as the central focus of Ence's renewable-power portfolio. Ence has twice been included in Spain's IBEX 35 index: first from January 1995 to January 1997, and again from December 2018 to September 2020. Ence's public profile reflects the opportunities and tensions associated with large-scale pulp and biomass operations. Its strategy emphasizes renewable materials, resource efficiency and lower-carbon power, while its mills and forest activities are subject to scrutiny over land use, emissions, water, coastal locations and the long-term regulatory status of industrial sites. The company remains an active Spanish listed industrial group with two connected operating pillars: cellulose for the paper value chain and renewable electricity generated primarily from biomass.
History
Ence traces its origins to Spain's state-led industrial development in the second half of the twentieth century. Established as a national cellulose enterprise and associated with the former Instituto Nacional de Industria, it was created to develop domestic cellulose production and related forestry and industrial capabilities. The business was originally known as Compañía Nacional de Celulosa. Its development reflected Spain's effort to build industrial capacity around forest resources and to supply cellulose for the paper sector. For much of its early existence, Ence remained publicly owned. The company later became part of the privatization process affecting Spanish state-controlled industrial enterprises. In 1990, 49% of the company was privatized and the business was listed on the Madrid Stock Exchange. Following the offering, it adopted the Grupo Ence identity. The state subsequently sold the remaining 51% in 2001, completing the transfer to private ownership. After privatization, Ence developed around two mutually related activities. The first was cellulose manufacturing, based on eucalyptus wood and supported by forest management and procurement. Its mills in Pontevedra, Galicia, and Navia, Asturias, became the core of its pulp business. The company expanded its position in eucalyptus cellulose and served an international customer base, particularly in northern Europe. The second activity was renewable power generation, initially involving several forms of renewable energy and later concentrating strongly on biomass derived from agricultural and forestry resources. Ence's biomass generation footprint grew through plants in Huelva, Mérida, Ciudad Real, Jaén and Lucena. This business uses residues and other biomass resources to produce electricity and gives the company an industrial role in Spain's renewable-energy system. Ence has characterized itself as Spain's leading renewable-energy producer using agroforestry biomass and as the country's principal private forest manager. The relationship between forestry, pulp production and biomass generation is central to the group's operating model, although each activity is also subject to distinct markets and regulations. The group also entered solar-thermal generation through the 50-megawatt Termollano facility in Puertollano. Ence sold that plant in November 2020, marking a clearer concentration of its renewable-power activity on biomass. The company has periodically occupied an important position in Spanish equity markets. It was included in the IBEX 35 between January 1995 and January 1997, and returned to the index from December 2018 until September 2020. By 2019, Ence's cellulose production totaled approximately 1.2 million tonnes. Most of that production was exported to northern European countries, making the company an internationally connected supplier despite its concentration of manufacturing assets in Spain. In the same year, its power-generation activities produced approximately 1,908 gigawatt-hours of electricity, described as resulting from biomass combustion rather than fossil-fuel generation. Ence's modern identity combines industrial cellulose, renewable electricity and private forestry. Its history also illustrates the transition of a state-created industrial enterprise into a listed private company. The group continues to operate in sectors where commercial performance is closely linked to environmental permitting, forest stewardship, energy policy, industrial decarbonization and community relations around production sites.
- 2020
Sale of the Termollano solar-thermal plant
[1]Ence sold its 50-megawatt Termollano solar-thermal facility in Puertollano in November 2020.
- 2019
Reported pulp and power output
[1]The company produced approximately 1.2 million tonnes of cellulose pulp and generated about 1,908 gigawatt-hours of electricity, primarily through biomass facilities.
- 2018
Return to the IBEX 35
[1]Ence rejoined Spain's IBEX 35 index in December 2018.
- 2001
Completion of privatization
[1]The remaining 51% state holding was privatized, completing the company's transition from public ownership.
- 1997
First IBEX 35 period ends
[1]Ence's initial period in the IBEX 35 ended in January 1997.
- 1995
First IBEX 35 period begins
[1]Ence entered the IBEX 35 index in January 1995.
- 1990
Madrid Stock Exchange listing and first privatization stage
[1]A 49% stake was privatized and the company was listed on the Madrid Stock Exchange. It subsequently adopted the Grupo Ence name.
- 1950
Origins as a state cellulose enterprise
[1]The business was established as a publicly owned Spanish cellulose company associated with the former Instituto Nacional de Industria and initially known as Compañía Nacional de Celulosa.
Products and positioning
An integrated Spanish pulp, forestry and renewable-energy company focused on eucalyptus cellulose and biomass power.
Wood pulp
Eucalyptus cellulose pulp
Ence manufactures cellulose pulp from eucalyptus wood at its Pontevedra and Navia facilities. The pulp is an intermediate material supplied to paper, tissue and other cellulose-product manufacturers rather than a finished consumer paper brand. The business is focused on eucalyptus cellulose and has a substantial export orientation, with much of its output sold into northern European markets. Production depends on wood procurement, forest management, mill operations, energy efficiency, environmental compliance and international pulp-market conditions.
Renewable energy
Biomass renewable electricity
Ence generates electricity from agroforestry biomass at facilities in Spain, including plants associated with Huelva, Mérida, Ciudad Real, Jaén and Lucena. The activity converts agricultural and forestry resources into power and forms the principal renewable-energy pillar of the group. It complements the company's pulp and forestry operations while remaining exposed to biomass availability, electricity-market conditions, subsidy and regulatory frameworks, and local environmental requirements.
Forestry services
Forest management
Ence manages forest resources in Spain and supports the supply of eucalyptus wood for its cellulose operations. Its forestry role includes private forest management and the organization of wood resources connected with the pulp value chain. This activity is strategically important because it links raw-material security with environmental stewardship, land-use decisions and the sustainability expectations of industrial and institutional stakeholders.
Solar thermal energy
Termollano solar-thermal power
Termollano was a 50-megawatt solar-thermal power plant in Puertollano. It formed part of Ence's renewable-energy portfolio until the company sold the facility in November 2020. The asset is therefore part of the company's historical offering rather than its current operating portfolio.
Brand decisions
2020
Divestment of the Termollano solar-thermal plantM&ABackground
Ence had operated a 50-megawatt solar-thermal facility at Puertollano as part of its renewable-energy activities.
Action taken
The company sold the Termollano plant in November 2020.
Aftermath
The sale reduced Ence's exposure to solar-thermal generation and left biomass as the central focus of its renewable-power activities.
Recent events
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