The new tax on plastic has managed to stir up the entire industry.

The tax was published in the BOE on December 30 and entered into force on January 1.

The companies affected have had to face a significant outlay to adapt, on the run, their operations.

The Executive took forward the rate with a total rejection.

From the car to food;

companies and employers requested an extension from the Executive, in line with the rest of Europe.

Spain is the only EU country that applies a tax like this.

In the plastic sector, one of the most affected,

confusion and anger reign with the Government

, which, they say, has ignored the entire business fabric of the country.

"It is not correct that the tax is going to end, as the Government alleges, with the consumption of plastic from the root. Today there are no safe alternatives for many of our products," says

Rafael Climent

, president of Climber Industries, a company leading company in the manufacture of containers and packaging of expanded polystyrene, a type of plastic that is used, among other uses, in the preservation of fresh food.

His company is based in the Alicante town of Ibi and is the result of the reconversion of a family toy company, which opted for transformation before the entry of Chinese competitors into the toy business.

Climent estimates the impact of the tax at

900,000 euros

per year.

"The income to the Treasury must be made 20 days after billing, while many of our clients do not enter us until after 80 days, which means a lag of two months, that is, we will have to advance 150,000 euros of our treasury", calculates Climent, who foresees cash problems for some companies: "

There will be those who have to pay the Treasury without being able to pay their salaries

".

Anger among industrialists in the area is widespread.

The rate is levied at 0.45 euros for each kilogram of non-recycled plastic.

This structure has forced businessmen like

Antonio Ruiz

, executive director of Pohuer, a group specializing in packaging, to undertake an adjustment in their billing systems.

"We have dedicated about

8,000 euros

to this work," he points out.

In Pohuer about 70% of the production goes to the food sector.

Ruiz points out that the rate leads to transferring the rise downstream in the distribution chain.

"The client, in turn, will transfer the increase to the next link and so on until reaching the big brands," he explains.

Groups like Carrefour or Mercadona, which have greater bargaining power compared to suppliers, "

will not admit 100% of the impact of the tax

, which means that our clients will retrace their steps to renegotiate with us." , point.

The manufacturers' margins were already affected by the energy crisis, which places these companies in a difficult position when it comes to assuming part of the tax in favor of their customers.

"The tax has surprised us in full renegotiation of the annual commercial agreements. Without a doubt, it will affect sales," agrees Ruiz, who calculates an impact of around

400,000 euros per year

for the company: "The blow is comparable to what we pay by the light of a year".

A hit of 690 million

"

The Government has not been clear with the industry

until the last moment. There have been contacts, yes, but in the end this Executive prefers to regulate based on decrees," laments

Alfonso Biel

, president of the Sphere Group in Spain, a company of Aragonese origin and French capital specialized in the manufacture of bags.

Biel points out that part of the plastics already pay a green point for its management, in the same way, he criticizes that the new tax affects the impact of VAT, a tax that overlaps the previous one.

Biel asserts that the tax reduces the competitiveness of the sector and encourages customers to seek alternatives to the national product.

The manager shows his concern about a diversion of investor appetite towards other countries: "In our case, we have to render accounts before Paris. The group has plants in France, Germany, Italy or the United Kingdom, if Spain discourages and complicates the sector, the capital leaves."

Cinta Bosch

, manager of Sustainability at

AECOC

, the association of manufacturers and distributors, assures that more than twenty days after its entry into force, the tax continues to generate many doubts in the industry.

"SMEs that believe they are not affected by the new tax contact us and they are," she says.

According to data from the employers, the annual impact of the tax for all the companies affected in Spain is estimated at around

690 million euros

, between the direct impact and the expenses necessary to adapt the operations of the companies to the new regulatory framework. .

The Treasury expects to raise

491 million euros annually

.

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