World News

Industry news and insights from Europe and around the World

UK News

Latest news and developments in the United Kingdom

Products

Keep up-to-date with the latest new products and technology

Features

General articles, applications and industry analysis

Groupe Atlantic plans €150m heat pump plant

Groupe Atlantic will build the new plant in the SaôneOr joint development zone in the Grand Chalon

FRANCE: French HVAC company Groupe Atlantic has announced its intention to establish a new €150m heat pump manufacturing site in France in 2024. 

This new 35,000m2 facility will occupy a 19-hectare site in the SaôneOr joint development zone in the Grand Chalon, around 125km north of Lyon. It will be the company’s third heat pump plant in France. The other two are in northern France at Billy-Berclau and Merville. 

Construction of the new factory is expected to commence in 2024 for delivery in 2025 and a potential expansion in 2027. The plant is expected to be producing 180,000 monoblock outdoor and indoor units by 2028 (150,000 heat pumps were produced by Groupe Atlantic in 2022).

Groupe Atlantic claims to be France’s number one HVAC manufacturer and no2 in Europe with 31 industrial sites, 13,000 employees worldwide, and a turnover of €3bn. Its current heating brands include Atlantic, Ideal, Hamworthy, ACV and Keston.

Heat pump production commenced at the Ideal Heating factory in Hull, UK, earlier this year. It is also constructing a new £10m R&D facility for low carbon heating solutions at the Hull site, in addition to two specialised heat pump R&D centres in France.

Earlier this year, the company took a stake in UK CO2 heat pump manufacturer Clade Engineering Systems and acquired German geothermal heat pump company Hautec Wärmepumpen in 2021.

At the end of last year, Groupe Atlantic announced a joint venture with Fujitsu General to produce air-to-water heat pumps at the Billy-Berclau factory.

Related stories:

Heat pump production begins at Ideal Heating7 August 2023
UK: A visit by energy efficiency and green finance minister Lord Callanan has marked the start of heat pump production by Ideal Heating at its Hull factory. Read more…

Groupe Atlantic invests in Clade22 March 2023
UK: French HVAC company Groupe Atlantic, the owner of UK company Ideal boilers, has made a “major investment” in Clade Engineering Systems, the Bristol-based CO2 heat pump manufacturer. Read more…

Ideal launches monobloc heat pump – 7 May 2023
UK: Ideal Heating, a company with a tradition in gas heating, has launched its first monobloc heat pump for the domestic UK market. Read more…

Ideal invests £10m in heat pump R&D centre – 3 April 2023
UK: Ideal Heating has submitted plans for a new £10m R&D facility for low carbon heating solutions, such as air source heat pumps, at its UK headquarters in Hull. Read more…

Fujitsu JV will produce heat pumps in Europe27 December 2022
JAPAN/FRANCE: Fujitsu General has established a joint venture with French heating company Groupe Atlantic to produce air-to-water heat pumps in Europe. Read more…

Latest News

15th June 2026

US aircon and heat pump shipments up 5.1%

USA: US shipments of central air conditioners and air-source heat pumps reached 837,098 units in April, an increase of 5.1% compared to April 2025. 
14th June 2026

MSAB to buy significant stake in Beijer Ref

SWEDEN: Family-owned Swedish investment company Melker Schörling AB (MSAB) is to become the largest shareholder, in terms of voting rights, in refrigeration wholesaler Beijer Ref. 
13th June 2026

Customs discover HFCs hidden in LPG tanks

POLAND: Not for the first time, attempts to smuggle refrigerant into Poland in car LPG tanks have been foiled by customs officers in Poland.
13th June 2026

Uniflair chillers for liquid-cooled data centres

ITALY: Schneider Electric has launched the Uniflair XCA series of air-cooled and free-cooling chillers to meet the demands of AI-driven, high-density liquid-cooled data centres. 
12th June 2026

German refrigerant leak rates down to 1%

GERMANY: Latest figures from Germany suggest that average refrigerant leak rates were down to just 1% in 2025.
12th June 2026

EPEE offers “cost-effective” answer to PFAS emissions

BELGIUM: A new report suggests that building on the European F-gas regulation, while further reducing leaks and increasing reclamation, would be the most cost-effective ways to reduce PFAS emissions.