This joint project is being delivered by Eco Baltia, which is backed by the INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund, together with PICHE, an industrial park developer in Latvia. The total investment exceeds €35 million.
The plant will be one of the largest and most modern PET recycling factories in Europe and one of the largest industrial buildings in Latvia. Its total indoor area, including production facilities, well-equipped office space and various shared facilities, will reach a total of ~30,000 square meters. The outdoor area will also cover ~40,000 square meters. As part of the project, PET Baltija’s existing Latvian factory in Jelgava will be relocated to the new production facility in Olaine over time.
With the factory currently under construction, the plant’s initial phase was celebrated in early May. This marked the installation of the first production equipment, located within one of the completed production areas.
The supplier of the recycling equipment is Starlinger, an Austrian manufacturer and one of the world’s leading developers and manufacturers of recycling technologies. In Europe, only two production plants currently have Starlinger equipment of this level already installed, while globally there are only ten examples. Therefore, the PET Baltija factory will also technologically be one of the most modern PET recycling factories in Europe and in the world more broadly.
Following the sustainability strategies of Eco Baltia and PET Baltija, which aim to reduce resource consumption and promote a circular economy, the building will comply with the Breem sustainable construction standard and will be fully powered by renewable energy.
The factory will also have unique wastewater treatment equipment, which will also significantly reduce the consumption of chemical substances in the wastewater treatment process. In addition, the factory will have the highest of standards air recuperation system, which will reuse excess heat energy generated during the PET melting for heating of the building. In accordance with the ESG strategy, significant attention is being paid to employee well-being and working conditions, to provide the highest of work safety standards, ergonomic and comfortable workspaces, as well as shared and recreational spaces.
PET Baltija’s relocation is planned in several stages, gradually shifting all PET Baltija production from Jelgava to the new factory in Olaine by the end of Q1’2024. The total number of jobs at the new factory will then exceed 250.
