Morrisons said in its 2021/22 financial results that it holds a 50% stake in Yes Recycling (Fife) Ltd, which owned a 15,000 tonne soft plastic recycling plant in Fife.
Morrisons was planning to send soft plastic collected in store to the plant in Fife and declared the site open earlier this year ( see letsrecycle.com story).
However, Yes Recycling was forced to call in administrators on Friday (21 April) after it was unable to pay debts falling due (see letsrecycle.com story).
Now, in a statement given to letsrecycle.com, a spokesperson for Morrisons said the plant “encountered a number of significant operational issues which meant that the cash burn was significantly ahead of projections.”
The spokesperson added that in recent weeks the business “urgently sought alternative additional funding which was, very regrettably, unsuccessful.”
“We recently learned that the lending bank has placed the business into administration. We will of course assist the administrator in any way we can in the coming weeks,” they concluded.
Process
When declaring the plant open, Morrisons said the plant will reprocess soft plastics using a “patented technology developed over the last seven years”.
The retailer added at the time that all of the plastic material will be sorted, broken down and turned into flakes and pellets which can be used to make new plastic products.
Other pellets are compressed into Ecosheet, which Morrisons describes as an “environmentally friendly alternative to plywood”, which can be used in construction and agriculture industries.
Losses
Morrisons recorded a £700,00 loss in its investment into Yes Recycling Fife Ltd in its 2021/22 financial results.
“Management has considered that no impairment is required for its investment in Yes Recycling (Fife) Ltd as the entity is in start-up phase,” the results read.
Other stakeholders in the plant will also be monitoring the situation closely. Fife council is understood to be meeting today to discuss what to do with plastic film, after spending more than £400,000 awarded to it by Zero Waste Scotland on upgrading its sorting facilities so it can send material to the plant.
Nestle also invested more than £1 million into the plant. A spokesperson for the company said: “Nestlé is closely monitoring the situation at Yes Recycling in Fife and is working closely with the relevant parties to create a positive outcome. We continue to support recycling infrastructure investments in the UK.”
Other organisations / investors involved in the development of the site include:
- Cireco
- Zero Waste Scotland
- Triodos Bank
- Scottish Enterprise
- Lloyds Bank
- Fife Council
- Scottish Development International
- Business Gateway Fife
- Ecosurety
Register for free to comment