px Group launches world’s first commercial-scale plastic recycling plant

px Group, the owner of Saltend Chemicals Park and operator of several critical energy infrastructure sites in the UK and Europe, has announced that they are now recruiting for over 30 new roles in Teesside. This latest recruitment drive is part of their 10-year operations and maintenance contract on a project with ReNew ELP, a subsidiary of Mura Technology.

The project, based at the Wilton International site in Teesside, UK, will deliver the world’s first commercial scale plastic recycling plant, utilising HydroPRS™ technology. px Group is about to commence a huge recruitment drive for this project, recruiting 33 key roles, with scope for more to become available as the project continues to develop. px Group are currently receiving applications for the ‘Maintenance Manager’ and ‘Production Manager’ roles. Further recruitment will commence in the new year for the remaining roles in Operations & Maintenance, and Site Administration Once live, the project in Teesside will see Mura Technology’s HydroPRS™ process used to recycle end-of-life plastic that could not previously be recycled and returned into a useful form.

The HydroPRS™ process uses supercritical water to break down post-consumer plastics into a range of valuable liquid hydrocarbon products including naphtha, gas oils and heavy wax residue, which are all essential building blocks in the manufacturing of new plastics and other materials. Unlike traditional mechanical recycling, there is no limit to the number of times plastic can be recycled using this process, in addition it is capable of processing all plastic waste types, including difficult-to-recycle material such as composite films.

At this site, px group and ReNew ELP will initially process over 20,000 tonnes of waste plastic each year during phase 1 of operations. The site has scope and planning permission for additional processing lines, which would take its processing capacity to over 80,000 tonnes per year. Geoff Holmes, CEO of px Group, says: “We are delighted to bring over 30 new jobs to the local Teesside area and offer talented individuals the opportunity to join the px family which has 30 years of hands-on experience developing cleaner energy projects. The team on this exciting project with ReNew ELP will play an important role in creating and establishing a sustainable recycling solution for the future and we look forward to welcoming our brilliant new recruits.”