Valpak seals five-year deal with Rockware for PRNs

The UK's largest compliance scheme signed the five-year deal with one of the UK's largest glass manufacturers, Rockware Glass.

In the five-year agreement, Valpak will purchase around 250,000 tonnes of PRNs each year from Rockware, one of the largest glass manufacturers in the UK. Valpak will also have first refusal on any other PRNs generated by the West Yorkshire-based reprocessor.

Valpak CEO Steve Gough (left) signs the contract with Rockware director of logistics Malcolm Vernon.

Revenue from the PRNs, likely to total millions of pounds each year, will be invested into projects to expand glass recycling including developments with Rockware's partner collection company, Berryman.

Valpak has had close links with Rockware and Berryman for some years – including the sale of Valpak's commercial glass collection service, recycle-more-glass, to Berryman in 2003 (see letsrecycle.com story). The sale included a five-year agreement for PRNs from the service, about 60,000-65,000 tonnes a year.

The compliance scheme's new agreement with Rockware “cements” the relationship, it said today. Valpak's new chief executive, Steve Gough, said: “Valpak has enjoyed a strong relationship with Rockware for some time now, and this agreement furthers our working partnership. Valpak requires all reprocessors to provide business plans for PRN investment, and Rockware's plan will really help to grow and develop UK recycling infrastructure.”

Targets
The agreement with Rockware comes at a important time in glass packaging recycling, as new targets for obligated packaging producers begin to bite. Glass is one of the packaging materials in which a good deal of progress will be needed in increasing the amount of recycling in the run up to the next European target in 2008.

Mr Gough said: “At a time when the UK faces ever-more challenging targets, particularly with regard to glass, this is an important step.”

PRN revenue from the agreement will underpin Berryman's 1.3 million investment in colour-separation technology for its South Kirby plant, a new 2 million plant in Doncaster and improvements to the existing treatment plant at Knottingley. Investment is also to be channelled into Rockware's glass recycling education programme.

Malcolm Vernon, Rockware director of logistics, said: “This agreement will secure the ambitious programme of education, infrastructure and technology that we are putting in place in order to achieve our challenging targets.”