Polysmart unveils $60m plant to recycle 15m bottles daily

Polysmart Packaging Limited has unveiled a $60 million recycling facility designed to process up to 15 million plastic bottles daily.

The facility, which will process 100,000 tonnes of mixed plastics annually when operating at full capacity, is expected to recycle approximately 6.5 billion PET bottles yearly, converting discarded plastics into food-grade recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) for use in manufacturing new bottles.

Speaking at the official opening and commissioning of the facility, the Chief Executive Officer of Polysmart Packaging Limited, Wasiu Balogun, said the investment represented a significant milestone in the company’s journey from a modest beginning in 2013 to becoming a major player in Nigeria’s recycling industry.

Balogun recalled that the company started with an initial capital of N2 million, noting that its growth into a $60 million industrial investment reflected its commitment to addressing Nigeria’s plastic waste challenge through large-scale recycling.

He said: “When this facility is running at full capacity, it will take in 100,000 tonnes of mixed plastics every year. That is about 6.5 billion PET bottles.

“Think about that: about 15 million bottles a day that will no longer be buried, burned or washed into the Atlantic.”

According to him, the facility will sort, wash and decontaminate collected plastics before transforming them into food-grade recycled PET, suitable for manufacturing new bottles.

“Instead, they will be sorted, washed, decontaminated and transformed into food-grade recycled PET, clean enough to become a new bottle again. Every recycled bottle means less crude oil drawn from the ground and less energy burned to make new plastic,” he said.

Also speaking at the event, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, called for stronger enforcement of environmental regulations and a coordinated national approach to waste management to address the growing problem of plastic pollution.

The monarch commended Polysmart for investing in recycling infrastructure and contributing to environmental sustainability and industrial development.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Polysmart Packaging Limited, Niyi Yusuf, described the $60 million investment as a demonstration of confidence in Nigeria’s industrial potential.

Yusuf said the facility, which he described as Africa’s largest food-grade recycled PET plant, would strengthen Nigeria’s position in the recycling industry and create opportunities for the country to emerge as a recycling hub for West Africa.