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towards much more ‘cleaner and
greener’ operations and he is proud
to set an example in best ‘green’
practice. ‘At Skelleftehamn we will
soon introduce a Liebherr electric
material handler to feed the copper
granulation line. This line is already
fully electric.’ According to Boman, in
the coming years many more tools
and machines will be replaced by
100% electricity powered solutions.
RAILWAY HEADACHE
Material for Kuusakoski’s northern
operation is supplied by both trucks
and trains. Because of insufficient
capacity on two existing railway lines,
the Swedish government in 2010
decided on a third line which now
runs along the country’s east coast.
‘Cheap and clean energy is the key to
north Sweden’s future success,’ says
Olov Boman, managing director of
Kuusakoski Recycling Sweden. On the
sidelines of the latest International
Electronics Recycling Congress (IERC)
in Salzburg, Boman proudly outlined
the opportunities arising from the
arrival of battery specialist Northvolt,
along with ‘all these data centres’ and
many others to settle in and around
his home region of Skelleftea.
‘Because I grew up in the area it’s
exciting to witness how the inflow of
people from outside has brought new
energy,’ Boman explains. ‘This is good
for all of us. What’s more, obviously,
more people, more investments and
more activities ultimately boost scrap
volumes, which is good news for our
business, too.’
12 YARDS, TWO SHREDDERS
Kuusakoski Recycling claims a leading
role in Sweden’s scrap metal sector.
Scattered across the country, the com-
pany operates 12 yards, most of which
are collection hubs. Skelleftehamn,
next to Boliden’s Rönnskär complex, is
Kuusakoski’s main facility in Sweden,
with a 3 000 HP car shredder. In addi-
tion, there is a ring crusher for
e-scrap. The infeed of steel alone at
Skelleftehamn hits around 65 000
tonnes per year, according to Boman.
A second shredder is located at
Kuusakoski’s facility in Gävle on
Sweden’s east coast.
‘GREEN’ OPERATION ON
THE RISE
According to Boman, Kuusakoski
Recycling is busy transforming itself Team ‘Skelleftehamn’
Drone view of Kuusakoski Recycling’s Skelleftehamn operations.
A U T H O R Martijn Reintjes
The best is yet to come for Scandinavia’s recycling major
Kuusakoski – who else?
In September 2022, Scandinavia’s Kuusakoski Recycling announced an ambitious, multi-million-Euro
investment programme to strengthen its position in the recycling industry as a pioneer of the green
transition. What applies to the whole group certainly applies to Kuusakoski Recycling Sweden.
Daily practice at the yard.
Kuusakoski’s Olov Boman (left) and Anders Isberg.
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