Several delegates to the Plastics Round-Table of the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) reported on end market developments for scrap plastic. The Round-Table was held in late October in Brussels.
Mirella Galli portrayed Italy as “the leading plastics recycler in Europe over a number of years,” and estimated Italian recycling capacity to be around 1.4 million metric tons per year.
Galli, who is managing director of Italian plastics company Ricoplast and president of an Italian trade association, said the nation’s plastics recyclers had been keen buyers of material both in Europe and from overseas, and that they were always eager to develop new sources of supply.
She expressed concern that, with primary plastics prices at low levels, recycled material from Europe might prove too expensive for the Asian market. “It would be easier to sort ourselves out in Europe rather than try to find new outlets in Asia,” she stated.
Several of the other European market reports confirmed price pressure in many areas of the primary and secondary plastics business. BIR Plastics Round-Table chair Peter Daalder, who is with the Dutch firm Daly Plastics BV, noted that new polyethylene prices fell by between 150 and 200 euros per metric ton during September.
Marc Figueras of Spain painted a gloomier picture of the scrap plastic markets, saying there is an over-supply of some collected materials in that nation. The two or three large recyclers of PET in Spain are “saturated” with material and inventories are high. He added that HDPE was proving impossible to sell “irrespective of price” following a collapse in the market during September and October.
Surendra Kumar Borad of Gemini Corporation NV in Belgium described the Indian market as somewhat “disorganized” but with an annual plastics capacity of around 600,000 metric tons per year. Domestic collections accounted for all but 12 percent of its raw materials needs, with imports coming mainly from the U.S.
In the past, no bar had been applied to India’s imports of plastics scrap but allegations of “dumping” have prompted the introduction of “elaborate” government restrictions, according to Borad. Currently, only 22 companies are licensed to receive overseas plastic scrap, he noted. The “cumbersome” licensing system is deterring new entrants into the business, but the Indian government is showing no inclination to remove certain types of plastics scrap from its “red list” controls, according to Borad.
Daalder outlined a project to create an English version of European plastic scrap specifications for use in worldwide trading. Available for some time in German, an English draft has been compiled with the help of information from collection companies on the most prolific materials entering their yards. Publication is anticipated in early 2003 for the specifications, sponsored jointly by the BIR and another trade group.