José M. Raya (KEYTER): We help our clients decarbonise their processes
KEYTER Group has launched its new industrial complex in Lucena, a strategic project that strengthens the group’s production capacity and reinforces its position as a European manufacturer of HVAC and refrigeration solutions focused on energy efficiency and decarbonisation.
According to José M. Raya, the group’s CEO, “our role as an industry is clear: to help our clients decarbonise their processes, minimising energy consumption, environmental impact and water footprint.”
The new facility, recently visited by Juanma Moreno, has 40,000 m² of industrial space, distributed across two major specialised manufacturing hubs, together with 4,000 m² of office space and 6,000 m² of R&D laboratories, creating one of the most advanced production environments in the sector in Europe.
This development enables the group to evolve from a dispersed industrial model, with more than 25 warehouses at its previous location, towards an integrated, efficient and highly technological model, optimising processes, reducing energy consumption and improving industrial traceability.
The new facilities are organised into two major production units. On the one hand, KEYTER, specialising in HVAC+R air conditioning systems and high energy efficiency solutions. On the other, INTARCON, focused on commercial and industrial refrigeration using natural refrigerants.
The former KEYTER plant remains operational, complementing production and providing flexibility to the overall industrial system.
Sustainability and Efficiency
The new complex has been designed according to sustainability and energy efficiency criteria applied both to the products and to the industrial process itself. Its main features include: a rainwater recovery and reuse system; a design aimed at maximising natural lighting; high-efficiency climate control systems in production areas; and rooftop photovoltaic installations for self-consumption. These solutions make it possible to reduce the energy intensity of production and move towards an industrial model aligned with the sector’s decarbonisation objectives.
From this new industrial environment, KEYTER Group is driving the development and manufacture of key technologies for the energy transition: high-efficiency heat pumps, systems with heat recovery, Full Inverter technologies, and equipment using natural refrigerants (R290, CO₂, NH₃). These solutions make it possible to electrify thermal demand, reduce emissions and improve the energy performance of buildings and industrial facilities, in line with current sector trends. As highlighted by the group’s management, “heat pumps and natural refrigerants are now the real driving force behind thermal decarbonisation.”
According to José M. Raya, CEO of KEYTER Group, “our role as an industry is clear: to help our clients decarbonise their processes, minimising energy consumption, environmental impact and water footprint. These new facilities allow us to manufacture that efficiency from the very beginning, with greater capacity, greater control and greater innovation.” Meanwhile, Aurelio García, President of KEYTER Group, states that “this industrial complex represents far more than an investment.” He adds that “it is a model of sustainable reindustrialisation that demonstrates that energy efficiency can also be manufactured, generating skilled employment and proprietary technology from Andalusia.”
Energy Transition
With more than €50 million of investment, over 900 direct jobs and an international presence, the project strengthens the role of Andalusia as an industrial hub for efficient air conditioning and refrigeration, contributing directly to the decarbonisation of thermal demand, the electrification of heating, sustainable industrial development and the creation of skilled employment. As reflected in the sector’s own positioning, “every efficient installation is one step away from carbon and one step closer to energy independence.”