Extrupet opens Africa's first B-2-B plastic recycling plant

KAMPALA (Scrap Monster): The first bottle-to-bottle plastic recycling plant in the African continent has opened its doors on 11th May. The plant in Wadeville, Johannesburg was officially opened by Edna Molewa, Minister of Environmental Affairs. The opening ceremony was attended amongst others by government officials and PET industry leaders.

The plant produces resin suitable for carbonated drink sector. Additionally, it will supply nearly 14,000 tonnes of PET resins per year to the PET packaging industry. The plant is expected to divert additional 22,000 tonnes of post-consumer PET bottles from landfills every year. The commissioning of the new plant will help the country achieve its 50% recycling target for 2015. South Africa had recycled nearly 1.5 billion bottles in 2014.

The plant is the first on African continent to use a Coca-Cola approved technology for carbonated soft drink bottles. South Africa will thus become the first country in the African region to use PET for Coca-Cola products. The 3000 square metre PhoenixPET plant is equipped with Starlinger technology.

Extrupet is the largest and most advanced recycler of PET bottle materials on the African continent. It specializes in reclaiming and converting waste PET Bottles into various grades of PET chips and flakes, which are then converted into fibre, thermoforming, food-grade and strapping grade material to produce high quality and reliable end-products for use in packaging and other applications.