The Doğa group (Istanbul, Turkey; www.doga.com.tr/en) said it is in the process of building a PET recycling plant in Kirklareli on the Turkish border with Bulgaria.

With this move, the property, mining, and textile group is entering the PET recycling market. According to CEO, Ömer Ayvacı, Doğa plans to sell the recycled PET flakes for bottle-to-bottle applications. The plant is said to have a capacity of 32,000 t/y.

The recycling facility is being fitted by Herbold Meckesheim (Meckesheim, Germany; www.herbold.com), the company said. The German manufacturer, which has been part of the US machine making group Hillenbrand (Batesville, Indiana; www.hillenbrand.com), is currently delivering its fifth PET washing system to Turkey.

A Debaler EWS 45/160 BA is used for pre-sorting, the actual cleaning process begins with two SMS 80/160-F7-2 SB3 granulators with forced feed, the largest in Herbold’s portfolio. In addition, three-stage dryers from the HVST 150/150 series will be integrated into the system.