One year with SERNAUTO: closer to the automotive industry’s evolving needs

Just over a year after joining SERNAUTO, we look at what a changing automotive landscape means for the future of high-performance recycled compounds.

Barcelona, August 2026 – Just over a year ago, Rexelian joined SERNAUTO, the Spanish Association of Automotive Suppliers, becoming part of an ecosystem that brings together companies across one of Spain’s most strategic industries.

A year later, the sector faces an even more demanding environment. However, its drive to innovate and transform remains strong.

Spanish automotive suppliers generated €40.9 billion in turnover in 2025, down 0.7% year on year. Despite this challenging context, the sector invested €1.22 billion in R&D&I. This represents around 3% of its turnover and twice the Spanish industrial average, according to SERNAUTO.

For us, these figures highlight an important reality: transformation and competitiveness need to move forward together.

Materials are part of that equation.

Staying close to the automotive value chain

Since joining SERNAUTO in July 2025, we have strengthened our connection with the Spanish automotive ecosystem. This includes OEMs, Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers.

Last May, we participated for the second time in the XIII Encuentro SERNAUTO as an association member. The event focused on “La partida decisiva. Automoción española ante el nuevo tablero global.”

The discussions reflected the scale of the transformation ahead. Global competition, regulatory change, technology and industrial competitiveness were all high on the agenda.

Moreover, these challenges affect the entire automotive value chain. According to SERNAUTO, automotive suppliers contribute more than 75% of the value of a vehicle. Their ability to innovate and industrialise new solutions is therefore critical.

Being part of this ecosystem keeps us close to these conversations. It also allows us to exchange perspectives with customers and understand how material requirements are evolving.

Spain is also one of Rexelian’s key markets, and its industrial outlook reinforces the importance of staying close to this ecosystem. SERNAUTO expects vehicle production in Spain to remain at around 2.3 million units in 2026, with an initial recovery towards 2.4 million vehicles in 2027.

At the same time, important new industrial projects are taking shape. Ford and Geely plan to produce a new generation of low- and zero-emission vehicles at the Valencia plant from 2028. In Zaragoza, Stellantis and Leapmotor are assessing expanded production at the Figueruelas plant, including the Leapmotor B10 potentially from 2026 and a new electric Opel C-SUV from 2028.

These developments point to continued transformation of Spain’s automotive manufacturing base and new opportunities across the local supply chain.

The next challenge for automotive recycled compounds

One shift is becoming increasingly clear: the conversation around recycled content is moving from strategic ambition to industrial implementation.

And the clock is starting to tick. The evolving European End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) regulatory framework is adding further momentum to this transition and bringing implementation timelines into sharper focus.

The question is no longer simply how much recycled content manufacturers can incorporate into a vehicle. Instead, the challenge is to ensure that high-performance recycled compounds meet demanding automotive requirements.

They need to deliver consistent quality, processability and technical performance. At the same time, manufacturers need reliable supply at an industrial scale.

This shift is also visible in the wider industry agenda. The Spain Auto 2030 Plan places strong emphasis on the automotive supply chain. One of its key measures focuses specifically on transformation, innovation and circularity.

For Rexelian, this is where our expertise comes into play.

We develop high-performance recycled polyolefin compounds for mobility applications. By combining recycling and compounding expertise, we can tailor material properties to specific automotive requirements.

Our solutions support interior, exterior and under-the-hood applications. They help customers increase recycled content while maintaining automotive-grade performance and consistent quality.

From recycled-content targets to industrial reality

Ultimately, circularity creates value when it works in practice.

After more than a year within SERNAUTO, this has become even clearer to us. The automotive industry needs to connect recycled content with technical performance, consistent quality, industrial scalability and security of supply.

All these elements need to come together to meet the demands of the mobility market.

That transition requires collaboration throughout the value chain.

By staying close to SERNAUTO, OEMs and automotive suppliers, we can continue listening to the market and understanding its priorities. Most importantly, we can use those insights to develop automotive recycled compounds around the challenges the industry needs to solve next.