Supporting Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) in Norway

Challenge

PET recycling is way more efficient when there is a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) in place. Norway was one of the very first countries in the world to establish a DRS for reusable bottles, with a system for refillable glass containers first established as far back as 1902. Infinitum was created in 1999 as the country’s foundation in depositing and recycling non-refillable plastic bottles and beverage cans all over Norway. However, there was no local solution for recycling. PET bales were to be sent to recycling facilities in Sweden, Germany or the Netherlands in order to be turned back into new raw material for the Norwegian market.

Veolia's solution

Veolia developed a well balanced long term partnership with Infinitum and built the first recycling plant dedicated to PET recycling in Norway. The plant is located door to door to the country’s main collection centre. Infinitum manages the bales & cans, sorts and lends PET to Veolia that proposes a state of the art recycling solution. Finally, PET pellets are sold again to local bottlers.

This plant is a crucial step to close the Loop of PET, and has long been the missing link to close Norway’s national strategy toward a circular economy. The rPET resulting from the implementation of this system has an extra quality and is produced with the latest processes to date. Infinitum is a recognized reference and has already been visited by over 30 delegations from all over the world, including Asian ones.

Specific Benefits

• SUPPORTING EPR
  Extended Producer Responsibility involves the virgin producer into the management of its end-of-life product, whether it is concretely or financially.
   
• LOCAL LOOP
  Collection, sorting, recycling and transformation into finished goods in an area of a few hundreds kilometres wide, thus fostering circularity at the level of a region.
   
• CLOSED LOOP
  Cradle to cradle system that directly transform waste into the same product, and this for several life cycles
   
• FOOD GRADE
  Circular polymers cope with the most stringent industrial, legal and safety standards to be used in contact with beverages and food.
   

This is an important step on the road to a completely circular economy for beverage bottles in Norway. Now we don’t have to send our bottles abroad for recycling, and that means fewer trucks on the road and fewer greenhouse gas emissions, said Infinitum’s CEO Kjell Olav Maldum.