Investors to turn plastics into diesel – Minister

Dr Joe Oteng Adjei, Minister of Environment, Science and Technology, on Wednesday announced the interest of some investors to explore the possibility of turning plastic waste into diesel.

He said the investors were expected to look at the cost of financing the project in the country saying: “this is not a rocket science, people have done it and others are still doing it”.

Dr Oteng Adjei said this when he paid a working visit to a number of plastic waste recycling companies in Accra.

Some of the recycling companies visited are Enviroplast Company Limited and Zidanco Plastic Processing Enterprise.

Dr Oteng Adjei said the tour of the recycling plants was to afford him the opportunity to get first hand information on the industry, know their concerns and see how best the Ministry could assist them.

He dispelled the notion that government was going to ban the use of plastics in the country and explained that last year Cabinet took a decision to ban certain types of plastics and thus came out with a policy to implement its stated purpose.

Dr Oteng Adjei noted that the ban of those types of plastics would not have an effect on the local plastic manufacturer.

Mr Yiadom B. Kessie, Chief Executive of Enviroplast Company Limited, who took the Minister around the factory, explained that the company bought the plastic waste from collectors, washed and processed them into pellets.

He said the pellets were then manufactured into various products such as plastic cups, buckets, tables, chairs and polythene bags.

He said the company currently processed between 10-15 tonnes of plastic waste daily.

Mr Kessie stated that Enviroplast Ltd employed 70 workers whiles 500 collectors supplied the company with regular plastic waste.

Mr Ebow Botwe, President of Plastic Manufacturers Association of Ghana, said the Association intended to confront plastic recycling companies who were alleged to be importing plastic waste from Burkina Faso.

He said Ghana had enough plastic waste in the system to meet the needs of recycling companies in the country

Source: GNA