AFRY selected as an engineering partner for a new plastics recycling plant in Germany
APK AG has awarded AFRY with the engineering services assignment for the project development phases of its first industrial-scale plastics recycling plant using APK’s own Newcycling® technology. The plant is to be built in Germany with a capacity of treating approx. 40,000 tons of plastic waste annually (t/a).
APK aims to increase the recycling of flexible packaging materials, which today make up the majority of mixed plastic waste from the post-consumer feeds. The Newcycling® technology that has been developed by APK is a unique solvent-based process, which separates the different polymers of multi-layer plastics packaging materials and produces recycled materials with a high degree of purity suitable for new products.
AFRY’s assignment includes the project development phases FEL-2 (pre-engineering) and FEL-3 (basic engineering) services for all engineering disciplines as well as permitting engineering and project scheduling. The assignment will provide the necessary information and investment value estimation in order for APK to make a final investment decision. The completion of the project development phases is expected by Q3 2023.
“Our company has an extremely dynamic development ahead of it in Germany and internationally,” says Susanne Küppers, member of the Board of APK AG. “We want to show significant results by 2025. Our bar for selecting the right engineering partner was therefore very high. AFRY convinced us.”
Dr Robert Marx, member of the Board of APK AG, adds: “With AFRY, we have gained a partner with great potential, with whom we can also grow internationally. In addition, the company already has various experience in waste handling and plastic recycling. The respectful and appreciative interaction with each other gave the APK team the feeling of a good, like-minded project goal pursuit.”
“We are honoured to partner with APK in this important plastic recycling project and transition towards real circular economy for plastics. AFRY’s unique competence from various recycling technologies combined with process technology knowledge and local presence will add value to APK during all phases of the project development and implementation,” says Christian Beyer, AFRY's Head of Process Industries in Germany.
For further information, please contact:
Christian Beyer, Head of Process Industries Germany
Tel. +49 172 834 36 44, E-mail christian.beyer@afry.com
Media enquiries:
Marika Hahtala, Head of Business development, Marketing and Communications, AFRY Process Industries
Tel. +358 40 8238986, E-mail marika.hahtala@afry.com
Interested in learning more? Globally, almost 80 million tons of plastic packaging waste is generated every year and currently only about ten percent of the resources are recovered through recycling. The rest is incinerated, landfilled or released leaks into the environment in an uncontrolled manner. Read more
About APK
Plastic waste is one of the most pressing problems of our time. To meet this challenge, APK is developing forward-thinking technologies under its Newcycling® brand that will significantly contribute to reducing CO2 emissions as well as safeguarding raw materials for future generations. APK AG, founded in 2008, currently employs almost 220 people and operates a unique pilot plant in Merseburg, Germany, and a technical center at Frankfurt-Hoechst.
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