GCR Group to transform old Bosch factory into recycling center

The GCR Group has purchased the Bosch factory in the town of Castellet i la Gornal, around an hour south of Barcelona. The former Bosch production plant was closed last November. 

The Catalan News Agency can confirm the acquisition was formalized on Wednesday and the plastics recycling company has an investment plan of €100 million for the facility. 

The plan is to set up a plastic waste processing center at the beginning of 2023 "to consolidate the European leadership" of the firm, which is based in the town of La Bisbal del Penedès. 

The GCR Group will initially hire 60 workers from the nearly 200 employees Bosch laid off last autumn. Later, GCR may hire more former workers of the German multinational, either from the Castellet plant or other factories of the company.

Government and union celebrate reindustrialization

Catalonia’s Minister for Business and Labor, Roger Torrent, has celebrated the planned reindustrialization of the factory, calling the acquisition a success. 

The government official is "very satisfied" with the outcome of a second life for the facilities that once produced windshield wiper motors for a number of carmakers. The department will contribute to the company’s investment with a maximum grant of €1.8 million. "This is the path we must follow," Torrent told the Catalan News Agency.

UGT, one of the largest trade unions in Catalonia, also celebrated the purchase of the factory by the GCR Group. 

In a statement, the union called on the plastics recycling company to "give stability and gradually increase the number of workers hired from Bosch in Castellet." 

On the other hand, they emphasized that the purchase "is of great importance for the Penedès" local region, as it is "fundamental” for the “industrial future of the area."