Cheshire councils approve £1m grant that will help kick-start the construction of a £58m plastics recycling hub in Ellesmere Port, creating 80 new jobs. Tony McDonough reports

Rcycling company Enviroo will build a £58m plastics recycling hub in Ellesmere Port after securing a grant from councils in Cheshire.

Supported by Enterprise Cheshire + Warrington and working with businesses, Cheshire West and Chester Council, Cheshire East Council and Warrington Council have approved a £1m grant for the project.

Enviroo, a specialist polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling company, backed by infrastructure asset manager Reichmuth Infrastructure, will deliver the  facility at Peel NRE’s £165m Protos Plastic Park at Ince Marshes.

Totalling 81,107 sq ft, this plant will take PET – the main material used for food and beverage packaging, such as plastic bottles – and turn it into polymers that can be used to make new food packaging products.

This facility is set to create 80 full time jobs as well as 19 additional indirect jobs within the supply chain and an estimated 83 jobs during the construction phase.

Once operational it will process up to 35,000 tonnes of plastic a year, creating £4.5m GVA per year for the region’s economy.

It also enhances the region’s collective net zero ambitions with the report noting it was “in response to an increased global demand for food grade recycled plastic” and EU and UK Government legislation for food and beverage manufacturers to meet recycling targets.

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The grant funding green light came just days after Cheshire was selected by the government as a “key growth region” for clean energy and amid a North West Net Zero Industrial Cluster plan.

The grant award is subject to final contracts being completed and came after Cushman & Wakefield provided an independent appraisal of Enviroo’s Business Case supported by financial due diligence undertaken by SG Financial.

Ahmed Detta, chief executive at Enviroo said: “‘We are delighted with the grant funding approval enabling Enviroo to develop and operate its state-of-the-art plastics recycling facility at the Protos Park.

“We look forward to being a significant contributor to helping the region achieve its net zero targets.”