Umincorp has gained full ownership and control of recycling plant Plastic Recycling Amsterdam (PRA) after acquiring the remaining 50% interest in the plant from its current joint venture partner, Milieu Service Nederland.
Management of the entire recycling chain, from separation of the different types of plastic to the production of raw materials for new applications will therefore be wholly managed by Umincorp.
The acquisition was made possible by recently raised funding from investors in Umincorp Invest-NL and Energietransitiefonds Rotterdam.
The Amsterdam plant processes over 20 kilotonnes of household plastic waste every year. The waste is washed, ground into flakes and separated magnetically, using its patented Magnetic Density Separation (MDS) technology - an approach, said the company, leading to higher recovery rates and the development of circular plastic raw materials, while achieving avoiding more than 80% CO2 emissions compared to virgin materials.
The PET material from the plant is further processed - together with PET obtained from other sources - at the recently opened Umincorp Polymers plant in Rotterdam into pellets. These serve as a sustainable alternative to virgin raw material for the production of new plastics for, amongst others, consumer packaging.
The new structure enables Umincorp to further expand its focus on the production of recyclate, which can then be used for high-value and consumer-oriented applications.
Thanks to the capital injection from Invest-NL and the Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam, Umincorp has also been able to purchase new machines for both operating sites, boosting the high quality of the recyclate and enhancing the efficiency and capacity of the two plants. “Because we now control the entire recycling chain and can invest in new machines, we are able to improve the quality of the recycled plastic pellets even further and to further increase our production capacity,” said Arjen Wittekoek, general manager of Umincorp.
Umincorp is thus well positioned to support its customers’ compliance with the upcoming European regulations on mandatory levels of recycled content in new products. As well, the Dutch government has also recently announced plans to make a minimum percentage of recycled material mandatory for Dutch plastics manufacturers from 2027.