Durham recycling firm close to clinching deal

Feb 15 2010 by Karen Dent, The Journal

A SMALL County Durham recycling firm is bringing a revolutionary German green energy technology to the UK and is close to securing a deal to build the first £4m plant in the region.

Plasrec has also attracted US interest in the alternative energy producing equipment, which uses waste such as food or sewage to create synthetic diesel.

The technology was developed and patented by German firm MME Technology, which has licensed the idea to Plasrec in the UK and Ireland and has given managing director Dave Atkinson the go-ahead to take it to the US.

Plasrec is now on the verge of starting work on the first British plant at its base in Shildon, after receiving funding offers from private backers. Mr Atkinson said: “The technology is absolutely groundbreaking. It produces a synthetic diesel – not a biodiesel. It uses organic waste material – sewage sludge, anaerobic digestion residuals - and it is fully patented.”

The system is already commercially established in Germany and the synthetic diesel produced can be used directly in unmodified diesel engines.

Mr Atkinson reckons each plant will need around 10 staff but his wider ambition is to create 100 skilled engineering jobs building the equipment in the North East.

“Once we are up and running, we will be able to build 50 a year. That’s not pie in the sky, that’s achievable,” he said.