Saving Energy with EPS: Ceresana Report on the European Market for Insulation Materials

KONSTANZ, Germany - Aug. 4, 2025 - PRLog -- How many billions of euros can the construction industry expect? Europe's construction industry is eagerly awaiting the details of the German "Special Fund for Infrastructure and Climate Neutrality" and the "Made for Germany" initiative. Some of the gigantic investments will in any case be spent on buildings – and therefore also on thermal insulation and energy-efficient refurbishment. Ceresana is now publishing market data and forecasts for the entire European insulation market for the seventh time.

Insulation Industry Hopes for an Upturn

Over the past two years, Ceresana's market researchers have recorded an overall decline in demand for insulation materials in Europe (including Russia and Türkiye). Although the renovation construction sector is developing dynamically in various regions, it can only partially compensate for the tense situation in new construction, where new projects are being abandoned, downsized, or postponed. The completion of new apartments could now bottom out in the current year: The construction industry in Europe is expected to stabilize slightly from 2026. In some countries, however, the turnaround in the insulation market is likely to take a little longer. In Italy and France, major support programs for the construction industry have just ended. The manufacturers and processors of insulation materials are now expecting a lot from the billions in government spending in Germany, but also from the EU Commission's plans to make the European Union independent of oil and gas from Russia by 2030 and climate-neutral by 2050 by investing in energy efficiency and energy saving.

Trend Towards Foam Insulation

According to Ceresana's market research, the demand for expanded polystyrene (EPS), which is sold under trade names such as Styrofoam or Airpop, is currently growing in Europe. Other foamed plastics are also used for thermal insulation and soundproofing: extruded polystyrene (XPS), polyurethane (PUR), and polyisocyanurate (PIR). On the one hand, synthetic insulating materials made from plastics are produced from crude oil or natural gas and have to be treated with flame retardants. On the other hand, they score points for durability, weather resistance, low weight, and, so far, low costs. The mineral wool market, which includes mineral fiber insulation materials made from rock wool or glass wool, is developing less dynamically. Bio-based insulation materials, which are ideally compatible with bio-based paints and coatings, bio-adhesives, and ecologically beneficial building materials, still only account for a small proportion of the total European insulation market. The types of insulation material used vary greatly from region to region.

Further information on the new edition of the market study "Insulation Materials – Europe" (7th edition): https://ceresana.com/en/produkt/insulation-material-marke...