The slate market - Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

Slate is a clay rock that has the property of splitting due to sedimentation. Traditionally used as a roofing material for outdoor buildings (roofs and tiles in particular), slate is also used indoors, in bathrooms and kitchens (worktops). Slate building solutions are considered very sustainable and are widely used worldwide, both inside and outside the building.

The world's largest consumers of slate are France, Australia, the Netherlands, Ireland and Poland. New markets are emerging, notably in Finland, Kosovo, Japan, Kuwait and Qatar. France alone consumes almost half of the tonnes of slate produced in the world, and imports more than 95% of its requirements from Spain.

The term "slate" is traditionally used in Italy for the rocks of the Fontanabuona Valley, and is also used to indicate rocks with similar characteristics that are quarried in the Imperiale area, in the Argentina Valley. Slate is also known as "Pietra di Lavagna", after the city Lavagna, which is considered the Italian commercial centre for this material.

Italian slate production is highly concentrated. Almost all the slate quarries in Italy are in Liguria, and production is carried out by around 80 companies. The turnover of the Italian slate market derives 45% from interior and exterior cladding, 35% from miscellaneous construction, 10% from billiards, 5% from blackboards and 5% from giftware. In order to survive market conditions, slate market players are trying to reach architects and the general public directly, and not just builders.

The slate sector is facing new technological challenges to offer increasingly innovative systems. Market innovations include pre-assembled facade cladding panel sets for contemporary architecture, or invisible solar thermal panel systems made of 100% slate, which exploits its ability to heat easily with solar radiation.