Interview with Carla Fos, Corporate Sustainability Manager at Molins, for Corresponsables

• In this interview published on June 9, 2026, by Corresponsables, Carla Fos, Corporate Sustainability Manager at Molins, discusses the key challenges involved in decarbonizing construction materials, the role of the circular economy in industrial transformation, and how the company is embedding sustainability across all areas of its business.
• “Molins drives decarbonization, circular economy and biodiversity protection to transform the construction sector”

Molins has defined a sustainability roadmap with concrete targets for 2030. How is this strategy integrated into the company’s decision-making and day-to-day management?

Sustainability is part of Molins’ strategy, our way of working, and the way we make decisions.

Back in 2021, we defined our 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, structured around five pillars: health and safety, climate change and energy, environment and nature, circular economy, and corporate social responsibility.

For each of these pillars, we established clear and measurable targets applicable across all business units and in every country where we operate.

This helps us prioritize the company’s strategic focus and move forward in a coordinated way across all areas of activity. It also serves as a guide for specific decisions, from how we produce and which energy sources we use to how we innovate in lower-impact solutions or integrate alternative materials into our processes.

Molins places climate action at the core of its strategy. What are currently the main challenges in advancing the decarbonization of the construction materials sector?

At Molins, we have set two main climate-related goals.

The first is to supply carbon-neutral concrete by 2050. The second, more medium-term objective, is to reduce our emissions by 20.3% by 2030 compared to 2023 levels.

In both cases, the key challenge is progressing toward increasingly low-carbon operations while maintaining our ability to deliver competitive construction solutions.

Our 2030 target has been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and we are working toward it through what we call traditional levers, such as the use of alternative fuels and biomass, as well as electricity sourced from renewable energy.

Achieving the 2050 target will also require more transformative initiatives, such as carbon capture and storage or utilization technologies.

These initiatives already involve significant technical, technological, financial, and regulatory challenges.

The circular economy plays a prominent role in the company’s sustainability strategy. How is this approach transforming the way resources are produced and managed within Molins?

We approach the circular economy mainly from two angles: the energy and material recovery of alternative materials in our operations, and the preparation of raw materials and alternative fuels from recovered waste processed in our circular economy plants.

For example, in 2025 our circular economy facilities in Spain processed and recovered nearly 250,000 tonnes of waste, converting it into alternative fuels and materials later used in our production processes.

This leads to lower consumption of natural resources and reduced use of fossil fuels.

Taking our Sant Vicenç dels Horts cement plant near Barcelona as an example, we achieved approximately 60% energy substitution and 7% material substitution.

Thanks to these circular economy practices, this single plant avoided the emission of more than 118,000 tonnes of CO₂ during 2025.

In terms of nature and biodiversity, how does Molins work to minimize its environmental impact and preserve the ecosystems where it operates?

At Molins, we are fully aware of the impact our operations have on the surrounding environment.

Within our 2030 roadmap, specifically under the environment and nature pillar, we set the goal that 100% of our plants located in environmentally sensitive areas would have biodiversity management programs in place. If everything continues as planned, we expect to reach this target this very year.

In addition, in 2025 we officially became adopters of the TNFD (Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures), applying this framework to assess, manage, and disclose nature-related impacts and dependencies.

One concrete example is our participation, together with Nactiva, Occident, and Fluidra, in the first public-private alliance for multifunctional forest management in the Serra de Collserola Natural Park in the Barcelona area.

This pioneering initiative, promoted by the Collserola Iniciatives Association, aims to reduce the risk of large-scale wildfires, reactivate sustainable forest production, and ensure the park remains a green, biodiverse, and resilient environment for the Barcelona metropolitan area.

The project is part of the Catalan Forest Climate Credits System, designed to promote Mediterranean forest management in order to strengthen resilience to climate change, improve carbon capture, increase water availability, and enhance biodiversity in managed areas.

All of this is carried out through measurable, certified, and long-term actions.

Another example is the construction, together with the Delta del Llobregat Water Users Community and Damm, of the Molins de Rei recharge ponds. This infrastructure allows the recharge of the Lower Valley and Delta del Llobregat aquifer using river water and, in the future, reclaimed water, improving both water quantity and quality.

Molins is committed to innovation and efficiency to advance more sustainable construction. Which developments do you consider most relevant in this transformation process?

A particularly important milestone took place in 2024, when Molins launched Susterra, a new product range bringing together the company’s sustainable solutions as part of its ongoing commitment to improving people’s quality of life through construction solutions.

These products feature sustainability attributes such as lower CO₂ emissions during production — with reductions of up to 25% — as well as the incorporation of recycled materials in their composition.

This new range represents a significant milestone in our commitment to more sustainable construction, helping not only Molins achieve its own goals but also enabling our entire value chain to meet its sustainability targets. Currently, 30% of our sales in Spain correspond to the Susterra range.

In addition, all concrete marketed by Molins in Catalonia is already produced using lower-carbon cement.

Social contribution is also part of Molins’ sustainability strategy. What responsibility do you believe industrial companies should assume in the development of the communities where they operate?

Companies — industrial companies included — have an important responsibility toward the territories where they operate.

At Molins, corporate social responsibility is one of the pillars of our sustainability strategy. That is why we work to support local community development through initiatives linked to education and training, local entrepreneurship, access to basic infrastructure, and essential services such as water, sanitation, and healthcare.

All these initiatives are developed in consultation with stakeholders and taking into account their needs and concerns.

We also promote local economic development through direct and indirect job creation. To support this, we have specific targets related to the percentage of local suppliers.

How do you work from the sustainability area to build an internal culture aligned with the company’s environmental and social goals?

Internal culture is built by making sustainability transversal and closely connected to teams’ day-to-day activities. At Molins, this means integrating decarbonization, circular economy, and efficiency goals, among others, into industrial, innovation, and management areas.

This process requires strong support in terms of training and capability building. For this reason, the sustainability area, together with the training department, promotes programs that not only explain the main sustainability concepts but also translate the roadmap into practical terms and help teams understand their specific role within it.

In addition, the continuous communication of initiatives and achievements reinforces engagement and highlights the collective impact of these efforts.

Sustainability is also embedded in the company’s corporate values, making it easier to integrate into the internal culture.

This is reflected in talent management as well, by incorporating these criteria into recruitment, development, and evaluation processes, seeking professionals aligned with long-term value creation — not only for the company, but also for people, teams, and the environment.

Ultimately, the goal is to move from a theoretical view of sustainability to one that is practical and tangible, where every person understands how they can contribute and sees their impact reflected in the company’s overall purpose.