Norway: BEWI recorded sales of €199m in the first quarter of 2026, up by 6% year-on-year from first-quarter 2025 levels. Group earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of €22.2m, up by 43%. The producer's Insulation & Construction segment contributed 50% of sales, at €99.5m, down by 2% year-on-year. Its EBITDA remained level year-on-year at €8.3m.

During the quarter, BEWI opened a new expanded polystyrene (EPS) recycling line at its Fredrikstad insulation plant in Norway. The group adjusted its insulation capacity utilisation and expenditure amidst an on-going construction industry downturn and high inflation. It intensified measures to increase operational efficiency and price and margin management across all units. Additionally, BEWI initiated extra price adjustments to cover ‘rapid and high fluctuations’ in raw materials and energy costs. It now expects ‘further profitability increases’ based on its current volumes.

UK: Flintshire County Council has received Knauf Insulation UK & Ireland’s plans for its new, 100,000t/yr stone wool insulation plant at a former Tata Steel site in Shotton, Wales. The Daily Post newspaper has reported the submitted details for the plant as involving an investment of €231m and creating 137 direct and 131 indirect jobs. The project has provisional North Wales Growth Deal funding worth up to €16.2m.

Knauf Insulation UK & Ireland Project Director Ian Gornall said "The new facility will help us meet growing demand for non-combustible, low-carbon insulation, supporting the UK's net zero and building safety goals."

Hungary: Masterplast recorded sales of €171m in 2025, up by 26% year-on-year. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) more than quadrupled to €9.2m. Thermal insulation systems sales fell by 3% but still accounted for the largest share of sales, at 39%. Geographically, sales grew by 78% in Hungary, by 11% in Poland and by 6% in Ukraine. However, they fell by 35% in Italy, by 17% in Slovakia, by 7% in Germany, by 10% in North Macedonia and by 6% in both Croatia and Romania.

Despite its sales and earnings growth, Masterplast’s net loss widened to €14.9m, more than triple its 2024 loss of €4.6m. The figure for 2025 included one-off losses of €7m, related to the discontinuation of a stone wool insulation plant project in Central Europe, and €2.6m in provisions for the closure of the group’s extruded polystyrene (XPS) production unit.

During 2025, Masterplast noted increased capacity utilisation at its expanded polystyrene (EPS) and XPS plants in Serbia. Other production units fell short of 2024 levels, while overall cost efficiency increased.

Ireland: Kingspan recorded sales of €9.2bn in 2025, up by 7% year-on-year. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also rose by 7%, to €1.22bn. Regionally, sales grew by 12% in Central and Northern Europe sales, by 7% in the Americas and by 4% in Western and Southern Europe. The group has recorded 12% composite annual sales growth since 2016, even as global non-residential construction output declined by 11% in Europe and by 4.5% globally since 2019.

Kingspan finished 2025 with ‘momentum across several strands of the business’ and ‘healthy’ backlogs generally. It expects a trading profit of €1.05bn in 2026, noting a sluggish start, impacted by ‘tough’ winter conditions but a firm path ahead.