Sibstekl’s readiness to implement the ROP was discussed at the SO.KNOWLEDGE forum

Dear colleagues, we are publishing news about a member of the Association " StekloSouz" of Russia, Siberian Glass LLC (“Sibsteklo”):

General Director of Siberian Glass LLC (one of the leading manufacturers of glass containers in Russia, an asset of RATM Holding) Anton Mor spoke at the session “Extended Producer Responsibility: How to Play by the New Rules”, organized by the Russian Ecological Operator PPK at the II International ESG Forum "SO.KNOWLEDGE" in Nizhny Novgorod.

The Forum is a unique discussion platform, a platform for dialogue between business and government (G2B), helping to jointly solve large-scale socio-economic and environmental problems, support changes and ensure the transition to conscious development. Among the forum participants are Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Victoria Abramchenko, General Director of PPK REO Denis Butsaev, Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District Igor Komarov, Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Gleb Nikitin, Governor of the Samara Region Dmitry Azarov, Minister of Energy and Mining of the Republika Srpska Djokic Petar.

Let us remind you that Sibsteklo is the largest recycler of glass waste in Siberia and the Far East.

“With the introduction of the new EPR model, we expect a multiple increase in the share of recycling used glass packaging,” said Anton Mor. – “Sibsteklo” is interested in 100% recycling of glass products manufactured at the enterprise after they have served their service life. The plant's capacity allows this.

Having indicated his readiness to implement the EPR, Anton Mor spoke about the implementation of the ESG agenda at Sibstekl and drew attention to the need to accelerate parallel processes that contribute to achieving the goals of reform in the field of waste management.

“The concept of improving EPR assumes that manufacturers of packaging, including glass, will be responsible for the entire life cycle of their products,” noted Anton More. “However, our influence on it within the stages of using glass containers for their intended purpose, turning them into waste and their subsequent collection, that is, at the household level, is very limited. Used bottles come to us mainly from landfills, where they most often end up as part of mixed MSW, crushed by the pressing devices of garbage trucks-compactors. It is problematic to extract such glass in full from the total mass.

In order for the quality of glass waste to meet the requirements of glassmaking, in March of the outgoing year the company commissioned the first stage of a technological complex for their processing, the productivity of which is 60 thousand tons of recyclable materials per year. By the end of the fourth quarter, the plant will recycle more than 40 thousand tons of cullet: currently, it uses up to 50% of waste glass as part of the raw material when producing brown containers, and up to 30% for colorless ones. The plans for 2024 are to increase the overall figure to 80%. In order to increase the flow of glass waste, agreements were concluded with the executive authorities of the Altai Territory and the Tomsk Region; a strategic agreement was signed with PPK REO on cooperation within the framework of creating an eco-industrial park in the Novosibirsk region.

“Yes, the recyclers will be supported,” stated Anton More. – But if the state begins to encourage citizens to perform primary sorting of MSW, the characteristics of cullet will improve significantly, and as a result, the directions of this support may become different. Funds can be redistributed, for example, to subsidize the transportation of glass waste from remote regions, including the Far East and the Russian Arctic, to the disposal site.