Page 45 from: November 2012
45November 2012
Optimism dimmed
beneath ‘black clouds’
Summarising the market back-ground, Mr Borad of Belgium-
based Gemini Corporation told the
Plastics Round-Table that overall
exports from Europe are ‘stagnating’
while those from the USA fell some
18% in the second quarter of 2012. In
India, meanwhile, the recent apprecia-
tion of the rupee has helped importers
to step up their overseas buying activ-
ity. However, he accused India’s deci-
sion-makers of ‘sheer apathy’ with
regard to the issues of waste and recy-
cling, stating: ‘The signifi cance of waste
as a resource is not understood well by
the Indian bureaucracy.’
The US market report submitted by
Michael Schipper of International
Alloys spoke of stable recent demand
from consumers for common grades
such as PET and polyethylene, but also
of ‘echoes’ of late-2011 ‘when con-
sumers had to cut back on purchases
and cancelled orders’. Meanwhile, the
European market is generally ‘very
morose’, according to Gregory Cardot
of Veolia Propreté in France, on account
of bankruptcy fi lings by plastics com-
panies, solvency diffi culties for convert-
ers and therefore ‘cash-fl ow problems’
for the recyclers themselves.
In Barcelona, Round-Table guest speak-
er Antonio García Gleiser from the Com-
mercial and Sales Department at Mare-
pa-FCC Ámbito outlined the growth in
Spain’s plastics collections over recent
years such that the national recycling
rate ‘is reaching 30%’ – and is thus in
compliance with the EU objective of
25%. However, he added, the plastics
and plastics recovery industry must work
together to build greater public aware-
ness of the recyclability of this material.
Indeed, the recyclability of plastics was
underlined via statistics reported by Mr
Borad: of the 25.1 million tonnes of
plastics scrap generated in Europe last
year, materials recycling accounted for
6.4 million tonnes (including 3 million
tonnes in Europe and 3.4 million tonnes
sent elsewhere for recycling) while a
further 8.6 million tonnes
was committed to energy
recovery.
More uncertainty
In reporting on his home
Dutch market and that of
Germany, Peter Daalder
of Daly Plastics also
focused on international
movements of plastics
By Ian Martin B I R B A R C E L O N A
BIR Tyres Committee Chair-
man Barend Ten Bruggencate
of the Netherlands.
End-of-waste push
welcomed at Tyres
Committee
scrap, pointing to the budgeting diffi cul-
ties created by the inconsistency in
freight rates sought by shipping lines
which regularly try to force up their
prices. The end result for the recycling
trade is a heightened level of uncer-
tainty, he argued.
Also on the issue of freight, the guest
presentation from Christian Elvers, Busi-
ness Development Manager at Spain’s
FMS Logistics, suggested the job of the
forwarder has become ever more
important: his responsibilities extend
beyond simply ‘organising transport
from A to B’ to, for example, checking
which shipping lines are options for the
different destinations and the equip-
ment needed; and ‘value-added ser-
vices’ such as container stuffi ng, distri-
bution and customs clearance.
The BIR Plastics Committee’s
Chairman Surendra Borad of
Belgium-based Gemini Corp.
Guest speaker Christian Elvers
of FMS Logistics of Spain.
Moves next year at
the European Com-
mission’s Institute
for Prospective Tech-
nological Studies
towards establishing
end-of-waste criteria
for end-of-life tyres (ELTs) could be
the fi rst step towards lifting a size-
able fi nancial and legislative weight
from the shoulders of the tyre recy-
cling sector. BIR Tyres Committee
Chairman Barend Ten Bruggencate
of the Netherlands said the remov-
al of ‘waste’ status would create an
estimated added value for the busi-
ness of ‘at least Euro 1 billion’ over
the next decade.
Speaking at the latest Tyres Round-
Table in Barcelona, he added: ‘At
present, end-of-life-tyre-derived
products have to be managed as
waste even when they are going to
be recycled or to be remanufac-
tured. The waste status is a huge
burden which adds significant
costs over disposal and in many
cases acts as a barrier to improved
resource effi ciency.’
The European Tyre & Rubber Man-
ufacturers’ Association is seeking
end-of-waste status not only for
ELT rubber-derived fractions but
also for casings suitable for
retreading. The organisation’s
Technical Co-Ordinator for ELTs
Jean-Pierre Taverne acknowledged
in Barcelona that the process of
agreeing end-of-waste criteria
may take two years or more, but
insisted the potential benefi ts of a
change in status – including an
improved functioning of the inter-
nal market through the application
of simplifi ed, harmonised rules –
would merit the effort.
Plastics
Even arch-optimist Surendra Borad struggled to find
positives with which to regale his audience in Barcelona.
The BIR Plastics Committee’s Chairman perceives ‘black
clouds on the horizon’ for the international plastics scrap
trade owing to, in part, strict enforcement of import
regulations by the Chinese authorities and the ban on
shipments of plastics from Europe to Malaysia. He is also
concerned that Chinese import licences are due to expire
at the end of December and that any renewal delays have
the potential to ‘upset the market tremendously’.
RI-9_BIR-Plastics.indd 45 09-11-12 14:26
