Casepak opens MRF in Leicester

A pioneering £21m materials recycling facility (MRF) has opened in Leicester to handle municipal and commercial waste, with the aim of recovering 95% of material as a resource.


The Casepak recycling facility was officially opened yesterday (January 16) by environment minister of Holbeach Lord Taylor, and has the capacity to process up to 150,000 tonnes of dry, mixed recyclables a year, including paper, card, plastics and glass.

According to Casepak, the remaining material will be used as a fuel for energy recovery and said the MRF uses the latest recycling technologies in a bid to help households and businesses maximise the amount of materials recycled.

The MRF is also the first in the UK to feature specialist screening for highly compacted materials and a de-inking screen which ensures newspapers and magazines recycled through mixed collection schemes “reliably and regularly” reach the quality standard required by reprocessing mills in the UK.

It is anticipated the plant will create 100 new jobs.

Environment minister, Lord Taylor said: “There are huge business opportunities in the growing recycling industry and Casepak’s £21m investment in this new plant is already showing rewards. This facility is not just good for the environment, with 150,000 tonnes of waste not going to landfill, it is also a significant boost to the local economy creating 100 new jobs in the area.”

Casepak joint managing director Mark Smith, added: “This is a major milestone for Casepak and we are delighted that Lord Taylor has taken time to open the facility. Since the MRF became operational in September we have already secured contracts to manage several local councils’ recyclable material streams and we aim to do more of the same in 2012.

“Our first shift is already complete and our emphasis will continue to be on securing new contracts and working with our customers and recycling partners to ensure that we can deliver the good quality materials required by the reprocessing industries.”

Carys Matthews

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