Germany’s STF Group (Aicha vorm Wald; www.stf-group.de) is building a new PET recycling plant in Pilsen / Czech Republic. The facility is scheduled to be completed at the end of March this year, company head Josef Söllner told Plasteurope.com. About 35 employees will likely be working at the site.

STF Group is a specialist for PET recycling and the manufacture of recycling machinery and plants. The latter are sold globally, Söllner said. In stark contrast to the good news from the Czech Republic, however, the group is facing a number of problems with its headquarter-based STF Recycling business. The rural district office shut down parts of the facility in Aicha at the beginning of this year after having found that the company had failed to obtain the relevant building law and emissions related approvals for modifications to the facility, although STF is in possession of a surveyor’s report. The company said it is working closely together with the relevant authorities in drawing up new petitions it intends to file in early February 2017. As a result of the partial shutdown, only two washing plants are currently in operation and STF has had to temporarily lay off about half of the 145 employees at the site. As soon as business returns to normal, Söllner plans to rehire these workers. He emphasised that customers will continue to receive their orders in the customary fashion.

Söllner’s recycling activities extend beyond STF Group. He also owns a majority share in ZWS Recycling (Regensburg / Germany; www.zws-recycling.de), and has a minority stake in PET recycler SRH Kunststoffe, which is currently building a plant near Plauen / Germany.