Asturiana de Zinc adapts its environmental authorization to the best available techniques

The Regional Ministry of Mobility, Environment and Emergency Management of the Principality of Asturias has revised the ordinary integrated environmental authorization of the industrial plant Fábrica de San Juan de Nieva, owned by Asturiana de Zinc, S. A., to adapt it to the best available techniques (BAT) conclusions for the non-ferrous metals industries. The resolution was issued on October 27, 2026, and was made public in the Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA) No. 217, of November 10, 2026, with official reference 2026-08962.

The legal framework of the revision

The announcement is published for the purposes provided for in Article 47.3 of the Law of the Principality of Asturias 1/2023, of March 15, on Environmental Quality, which requires the publication of this type of administrative acts in the official gazette. The administrative file associated with the revision is AUTO/2019/2494, as stated in the announcement itself.

The authorized activity corresponds to category “2. Production and transformation of metals” of the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Law, the state framework that transposes the European regime of integrated environmental permits. The revision is therefore linked to the updating of the permit conditions in accordance with the BAT conclusions approved for the non-ferrous metals sector.

What changes and who signs it

The purpose of the resolution is the revision of the ordinary integrated environmental authorization of the factory; that is, the update of the environmental permit that sets the operating conditions of the installation. The text of the announcement does not detail the technical conditions, emission limit values, or specific deadlines incorporated, which refer to the full content of the act.

The formal elements of the processing are as follows:

• Issuing body: Regional Ministry of Mobility, Environment and Emergency Management of the Principality of Asturias.
• Signing authority: the Directorate General for the Environment, in Oviedo, on October 27, 2026.
• Installation owner: Asturiana de Zinc, S. A.
• Installation: Fábrica de San Juan de Nieva.
• File: AUTO/2019/2494.
• Activity category: “2. Production and transformation of metals”.
• Publication: BOPA No. 217, of November 10, 2026, reference 2026-08962.

Where to consult the full content

The announcement indicates that the full content of the act can be consulted on the website asturias.es, following the path Topics / Environment / Environmental Authorizations / Registry of Environmental Authorizations / Ordinary Integrated Environmental Authorizations Section.

This is the usual channel to access the full resolution, as the text published in the bulletin is limited to the operative part and the identifying data of the file and the holder. The registry allows for the consultation of the conditions imposed on the installation within the ordinary integrated environmental authorization regime.

The review affects a reference industrial installation in the Avilés region, where the Asturiana de Zinc, S. A. factory is listed among the main industrial establishments in the area. Adaptation to the BAT conclusions involves reviewing the operating conditions in accordance with the most demanding technical standards set for the sector, which has a direct impact on the environmental control of the activity and on the urban environment near the plant.

Source: Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA), no. 217 of November 10, 2026, Section I. Principality of Asturias, page 1 (official reference: 2026-08962).