44
demonstrate what we’re capable of.’
Looking ahead, the entrepreneur
expects more durable production and
direct refurbishment in the automotive
industry will eventually catch up with
his business model. ‘This is a great
solution for the time being but it
won’t last forever.’ As he sees it, recy-
cling EV batteries into energy storage
solutions is not a ‘holy grail’.
There is also the possibility that the
company will shift its focus to realising
an EV battery-to-battery closed loop.
‘We’re offering rental options for our
revived storage systems to get new
clients. We are also already promoting
our systems in showrooms of affiliated
car dealerships. This may evolve into a
battery recycling partnership with car-
makers.’
DURABLE BUILDING BLOCKS
A couple of years ago, UK entrepre-
neur Benjamin Gibbons took a trip to
Peru and witnessed the true scale of
plastic pollution. Back home, the engi-
neer was determined to do something
about it domestically and set up
Circular11. The timing was tricky as
the launch coincided with the pan-
demic. On the upside, Gibbons had a
lot of time to fine-tune his ideas.
‘We mostly process PET, PP and HDPE
from household waste. The material is
shredded, turned into granules and
fed through an extruder. This allows
us to create durable recycled products
like sturdy, weather resistant outdoor
furniture, plant pots and, most recent-
ly, a variety of building products such
as fences and decks.’
Gibbons says the benches and picnic
tables are top sellers because they last
for at least 25 years, are low carbon
and don’t rot. ‘When you’ve finished
with them, they can be recycled four or
five more times. Ideally, this keeps
them serving a useful purpose for a
century, rather than melting them
down for energy and losing the materi-
al forever. This is the common fate for
about 88% of plastic waste right now.
My team is keen on changing the sta-
tistics in favour of circularity.’
Gibbons doesn’t agree that turning
post-consumer plastics into practical
items is ‘downcycling’. ‘Opinions differ,
I guess,’ he says with a shrug. ‘I don’t
mind how critics describe our portfolio
because some people are never satis-
fied. We provide a service that gets rid
of waste while turning the material into
assets, ones we can all relate to and
see every day, and ultimately increas-
ing recycling awareness.’
The impact of these recycled materials
stretches beyond reducing waste. ‘I
could see recycled materials replace
timber in many areas. This would help
curb deforestation and protect the
natural habitat of wildlife.’
The business, which supports the
Plastics Pact, was recently one of 17
beneficiaries of £3.2 million (EUR 3.6
million) in government funding. ‘It will
go a long way in scaling up our opera-
tions,’ says Gibbons, who is particular-
ly interested in exploring new applica-
tions in the building industry. ‘It’s still
early days for our activities in this seg-
ment. We noticed that during Covid
many people did home improvements
or needed a home office. Recycled
materials could be a game-changer in
this area. There are lots of opportunity
for growth.’ Benjamin Gibbons.
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