Sibelco has officially inaugurated its new glass recycling plant at San Cesario sul Panaro, Modena, Italy.
After acquiring the site in 2020, Sibelco began a major clean-up of the existing facilities. This included removal of around 50,000 tonnes of waste glass which had accumulated over previous years of operation. The huge piles of glass had become an eyesore for the local community and were causing environmental concerns.
Restoration of the site was completed in July 2020, at which point construction work began on the brand-new glass cullet processing plant.
The new plant, which employs 30 people, was officially opened on April 12 with a special ceremony attended by officials from local and regional authorities and representatives from Sibelco.
“Excellence in production quality and cutting-edge technology, coupled with a total focus on safety and environmental protection – these priorities have underpinned the renovation process completed over the last 18 months in full collaboration with local and regional authorities,” said Nicola Dalmasso, Sibelco Director Commercial Green Solutions Italy.
Corrado Baccani, Sibelco Country Manager for Italy, said, “Italy is one of Europe’s leading nations in glass recycling with 78.6 percent of glass packaging recovered through recycling. Sibelco is proud to be supporting the country’s recycling drive with our technologically advanced systems and focus on continuous improvement.”
Founded in 1872, Sibelco today operates over 100 production sites in 31 countries with a team of over 5,000 people. With an extensive multi-mineral portfolio (focused strongly on silica, feldspar, clays and olivine) Sibelco serves customers across a wide range of sectors including glass, ceramics, construction, coatings, polymers and water filtration. The company is also a market leader in glass recycling. Sibelco operates within a solid framework of sustainability, which aims to balance economic performance with environmental management and social responsibility.