For the owners of QC Polymer, a PET recycling company based in Bilston, in the UK’s West Midlands, 2024 has not been the successful year they envisioned when they acquired a majority stake in the company in January.
On 29 Oct., QC Polymer entered administration, citing pressure from high utility costs as the main cause.
Insolvency practitioners Hasib Howlader and Nimish Patel of HudsonWeir have been appointed as joint administrators. They will manage the business while seeking interested buyers for the company’s assets.
At the start of the year, Indian company Mysore Petro Chemical acquired 75% of the shares in the Bilston-based business, with the remaining 25% held by QCP Investment Group, Ltd. At the time, the new owners announced plans for significant growth that include scaling up the business to achieve a GBP 100m turnover within the next five years.
In September, however, the company announced it was open for investment, seeking GBP 1 million this year and potentially looking for GBP 5 to 6 million next year. The funds would be used to upgrade the sorting and technology used at the West Midland recycling plant.
“It is sad to see a green technology business at the forefront of its sector failing due to increased utility costs, in the case of QC Polymer,” said Hudson Weir director Hasib Howlader. “Brought about by the rising cost of fuel, perhaps it's time for governments to look at the sustainable environmental businesses in the UK and help them to thrive. Where the public are incentivised to reduce carbon footprint, I believe that the Government should provide similar incentives to businesses in the environmental sector such as QC Polymer through reduced energy rates.”
Hudson Weir has appointed commercial auctioneer GJ Wisdom to handle the sale of the company’s bottle recycling plant in Bilston. The facility has a capacity of 18,000 tonnes of 100% clear rPET flakes year and cost GBP 1.2 million to set up between 2021 and 2022.
An open viewing of the facility was held today. Bids may be submitted until 2 pm on 11 November 2024. The winning bidder will be notified shortly after the tender deadline.
QC Polymer the second UK-based plastics recycler to announce restructuring to its operations this week. Viridor said is shutting down operations at its plastics mechanical recycling facility in Avonmouth, a suburb of Bristol.