New £65M Plastics Recycling Plant to Begin Operation in Avonmouth

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Viridor- the Pennon Group owned recycling, renewable energy and waste management company in the UK announced plans to open a new plastics recycling plant in Avonmouth, near Bristol.

The new plant is expected to cost approximately £65 million. It will be capable to process 81,000 tonnes of PET, HDPE and PP plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays in its first year of operation, thereby producing around 60,000 tonnes of recycled plastic per annum. In the third year, the plant’s capacity will be boosted to process 89,000 tonnes so as to produce 63,000 tonnes of recycled plastic.

The plant site will also host a ‘Resource Recovery Centre’ (RRC), where all the non-recyclable waste will be processed to produce electricity. It will have capacity to process nearly 320,000 tones of recyclable waste, resulting in electricity generation of nearly 32 megawatts. The electricity thus generated will be used to power the plastics recycling plant, company press release said.

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Chris Loughlin, CEO of Viridor’s parent company Pennon noted that the commissioning of the plant will improve UK recycling rates and reduce the waste volumes exported out of the country. The combination of the world-class plastics recycling facility and the RRC will create a recycling powerhouse in the South West. Furthermore, it will bring in immense benefits to the regional economy, Loughlin added.