Technological watch

New HPDE recycling plant in Mexico to open in H2 2021

New HPDE recycling plant in Mexico to open in H2 2021An illustration of the planned recycling plant in Mexico (Photo: Alpla)Austrian packaging group Alpla (Hard; www.alpla.com) has announced plans to build a facility to produce 15,000 t/y of rHDPE in Toluca / Mexico, with operations scheduled to begin in the second half of 2021. The company said it is investing roughly EUR 15 m in the site, and construction is expected to begin in the autumn.
The family-owned firm noted that the facility will function as a 100% subsidiary, create 65 jobs, and material from the plant is expected to find use in non-food applications such as packaging solutions for personal care or household cleaning products. Primary target markets include Mexico, neighbouring countries in Central America, and the US, the company noted.
The benefits of the investment are said to be twofold: It allows the company to stay true to its regional strategy while helping Alpla realise its global objectives for the â??New Plastics Economyâ?, an initiative promoted by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF, Cowes / UK; www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP, Nairobi / Kenya; www.unep.org). Georg Là¤sser, head of recycling, said: â??Alpla has been demonstrating forward-looking action in the field of recycling for many years. We invest in regions where the demand for recycled material is not yet that high. In doing this, we give used plastics value and act as role models for the achievement of the circular economy.â?
The company said it has been in Mexico since 2005 as part of the first bottle-to-bottle recycling plant in Latin America with Industria Mexicana de Reciclaje (IMER, Toluca), a joint venture between Alpla Mexico, Coca-Cola Mexico (www.coca-cola.com.mx) and locally based Coca-Cola Femsa (www.coca-colafemsa.com) â?? see Plasteurope.com of 16.02.2012. Over the past 15 years, the partners have created a network for collecting and recycling, and Alpla said it seeks to utilise the infrastructure to develop HDPE recycling in the region.
Alpla announced its acquisition of two recycling plants in Spain in November 2019, its first move into HDPE recycling (see Plasteurope.com of 08.11.2019).24.09.2020 Plasteurope.com [245969-0]

Publication date: 24/09/2020

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