Electronics producers including Alba, Hoover Candy, Philips, and Whirlpool are setting up a not-for-profit company called the Recycling Electrical Producers Industry Consortium (REPIC).
The Consortium is now recruiting a chief executive officer, who will have a “six-figure salary”, to head up the operation handling its members' obligations resulting from the European Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive.
The Directive, which will be transposed into UK law by August 13 2004, requires that by August 2005 manufacturers will be financially responsible for the recycling of separately collected WEEE (see letsrecycle.com legislation section).
REPIC is the second major compliance scheme announced by electronics manufacturers in recent months. In November 2003, manufacturers Sony, Braun, Electrolux and Hewlett Packard revealed proposals for the European Recycling Platform (ERP) to operate a pan-European compliance scheme for the WEEE Directive (see letsrecycle.com story).
REPIC's twelve founding companies have committed themselves to 30,000 each towards the scheme's start-up costs. They have also each agreed to loan REPIC 20,000 for two years. Electrical and electronic equipment sector trade associations, the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances (AMDEA) and Intellect, are also involved with the scheme's development.
AMDEA's director general, Peter Carver told letsrecycle.com competition will be important in the WEEE compliance market. He said: “I think there are a whole lot of organisations out there considering setting up schemes. The reason we set up REPIC is because we want to ensure we get the best in recycling and the best prices. Competition is not a problem, it is to be encouraged. We have explained that to the DTI and they understand that.”
Membership
Under the WEEE Directive producers will be obligated for the transport, recycling and treatment of waste electrical equipment with each firm's obligation determined by its market share.
As with compliance schemes already well-established in the packaging waste recovery sector, REPIC will be aiming to carry out these obligations for its members at lowest cost, benefiting from economies of scale. Mr Carver explained that it will be working with logistics and treatment firms to meet its members' recycling obligations.
REPIC is expected to begin operations in the spring and is now inviting more companies to become members. The founding membership fee will be 10,000 until March 31, but after this deadline it will rise to 30,000 with a lower cost, 6,000, for SMEs. REPIC membership will be available to all firms defined as producers under the WEEE Directive, including manufacturers, import agents and retailers.
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