MBA Polymers:
Dr. Mike Biddle, President
MBA Polymers, Inc.
Richmond, CA  94804
USA
+1-510-701-7516
mbiddle@mbapolymers.com

 

EMR
Mr. David Ireland, Director of Technical Services
European Metal Recycling Limited
Warrington, WA5 7NS
UK
Tel:  01925 715 400
david.ireland@emrltd.com

 

 

Warrington, England – January 2008 –  European Metal Recycling Limited (EMR) of Warrington, England and MBA Polymers, Inc. (MBA) of Richmond, California, USA announced the formation of a joint venture company (JV) to build and operate a state-of-the-art plastics recycling facility in the UK  The joint venture plans to begin operation of a 60,000 ton per year processing plant by early 2009.
 
The new company, called MBA Polymers UK, is majority owned by MBA Polymers and will recover plastics from upgraded “shredder residue”.  This shredder residue is a complex plastics-rich mixture of materials resulting from the recycling of automobiles, appliances and other metal-rich streams. It is estimated that over 10 million tons of plastics from automobiles, electronics, appliances and other end-of-life durable goods are disposed of each year around the world. These plastics are commonly land-filled or incinerated at high economic and environmental costs because they have been deemed too complicated or expensive to recover.

EMR is concentrating the plastics fraction of the shredder residue produced from its large-scale metal recycling operations. This additional processing will also allow EMR to capture a higher percentage of the metals.

The JV will receive concentrated plastics-rich material from EMR’s facilities and will clean, sort and upgrade the plastics, and then sell the high quality plastics to MBA’s customers.

Mr. David Ireland, EMR’s Director of Technical Services said:

“EMR is a leader in metals recycling and this collaboration with MBA will make us a leader in plastic recycling too. It is a very significant step not only for EMR and MBA but for the UK too as this investment will allow us to recover the previously untapped plastic resource in the materials we recycle. Not only will this divert materials from landfill and generate significant CO2 savings but it will also put EMR at the forefront in meeting  the very demanding recycling targets set under producer responsibility regimes in vehicle and electronics recycling. These targets are very exacting and can only be met by applying new technologies to the recovery of plastics. We have been working with MBA for some time on this problem and we are very excited that we have now reached the stage where we can announce our intention to build a plant in the UK”

MBA and EMR consider this announcement a major milestone for both companies and Europe in general. MBA and EMR also believe that this JV represents not only an important business for both companies; it provides large social and environmental benefits as well.

Dr. Michael Biddle, MBA’s founder and President, provided some examples of the ‘win-win’ benefits that go beyond the obvious reduction in waste:

“Additional benefits are realized through the efficient production of plastics from plentiful domestic scrap and waste materials, which is particularly important in these times of high energy and commodity costs. Rather than build expensive and energy-consuming chemical plants, our company provides a way for Europe to manufacture the plastics it needs at significantly lower economic and environmental costs. Much like the story with aluminum, and for some of the same reasons, our plants require much less energy compared to a traditional petrochemical-based plastics plant to make the same amount and types of plastics. And for every ton of virgin plastic we replace, we can save two to three tons of the greenhouse gas CO2 from entering the atmosphere”.

Richard McCombs, MBA’s CEO, spoke very highly of EMR. He said: “We are extremely pleased to be launching this business with EMR. We have been very impressed with the EMR team. Besides great people, there are some impressive business and strategic synergies between the two companies.”

About European Metal Recycling Limited (www.emrltd.com)
EMR, with international headquarters in Warrington, England, is one of the largest metal recyclers in the world. It handles over 10 million tonnes a year of materials from consumers, industry and demolition works.  EMR produces over 100 grades of recycled products, which are taken to market by its extensive road, rail and shipping network.  The company operates at over 100 locations worldwide.  European Metal Recycling has achieved sustained organic growth over the past decade, with an average annual compounded sales growth of 20% over the last 10 years and turnover topping £1.7 billion in the financial year to December 2006.

About MBA Polymers, Inc. (www.mbapolymers.com)

MBA Polymers is a recognized leader at recycling high-value plastics from complex waste streams and end-of-life durable goods such as appliances, computer and business equipment, automobiles, and even sporting equipment. The company was founded in 1994 by Dr. Michael Biddle and Mr. Trip Allen to expand the research capabilities in the area of plastics recycling, and to develop a commercial process for recovering plastics from complex streams of materials. The company is headquartered in Richmond, CA, USA where it operates a large pilot, demonstration and R&D facility.  MBA designed, built and now operates the two most advanced plastics recycling facilities in the world: one in Guangzhou, China and the other in Kematen, Austria.  This plant will expand MBA’s global reach.
MBA Polymers has been widely recognized for its innovation. Examples of international recognition  include: a) Thomas Alva Edison Award for Innovation in 2002; b) Tech Pioneer Award from the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2006; c) Tech Museum Laureate: Intel Environmental Award in 2006; d) Ball State University Ascent Award in 2006; and e) being selected as one of "America's Most Innovative Companies" by Inc. magazine's Innovation Series.

Note to Editors
Changes to legislation over recent years have also resulted in the need for a modification in the way some things are done in the metal recycling industry.  The 2003 End of Life Vehicle Regulations introduced recycling targets to decrease the amount of waste coming out of vehicles when they are scrapped. A minimum of 85% by weight must be recycled rising to 95% by 2015. With metal content at around 75% and reducing this can only be achieved by recycling more plastic. The 2007 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations have reinforced the importance of plastic recycling for EMR further with the introduction of recycling targets for all items of WEEE, including large white goods and fridges.