The plastics recycling machine manufacturer cites increased demand for larger machines, recycled content and short shipping times for the higher sales.
Polystar, a plastic recycling machine manufacturer based in Tainan, Taiwan, has reported that equipment sales have doubled in 2021. The company says high demand for plastic recycling machines for postindustrial and postconsumer applications globally impacted sales.
According to a news release from Polystar, new regulations in various countries now require producers to use a higher percentage of recycled content in flexible and rigid packaging products. The company says the instability of raw material prices and supplies requires plastic producers to better recycle their byproducts.
In light of the increase in demand, Polystar says by the end of April 2022, more than 110 recycling machines will be shipped within 12 months. That figure is twice as many compared with last year.
Polystar says several reasons led to the increased drive sales in 2021, including increased demand for larger machines, product reliability and company services.
According to Polystar, the need for larger capacity machines and more machines has increased. The 800- to 1,000-kilograms-per-hour, or 1,700- to -2,200-pounds-per hour, pelletizing extruders have become a standard for postconsumer and some postindustrial recyclers.
Focus also has increased on reusing internally generated scrap by plastic producers, the company says. Businesses including packaging film and woven bag producers now require higher quality recycled content to reduce production costs as much as possible.
Polystar says its Repro-One recycling technology is a combination of shredder, extruder and pelletizer in one machine. This one-step process produces the best possible pellets quality at the lowest operation cost, according to the company, enabling producers to reuse pellets back in polypropylene tape extrusion lines.
The packaging film sector and plastic bag producers are required to use a much higher percentage of recycled pellets in the end products. For better quality control and to maximize the reusability back into the film extrusion lines, more producers have decided to recycle their production scrap internally instead of outsourcing it, the company says.
Recent installations of the Repro-Flex recycling machines, a cutter-compactor integrated model designed for recycling film scrap in Denmark, Italy and Switzerland, are equipped with features that minimize energy consumption and labor intervention.
The impact of COVID-19 continues to present various supply chain issues, resulting in high shipping costs and a shortage of supply. As demand for recycling machines remains strong, Polystar says it continues to prepare in-stock recycling machines to avoid long delivery times.
The company says it can better serve customers with faster machine delivery times and spare parts support by keeping machine components in stock. Polystar's manufacturing facility in Taiwan continues to operate at 100 percent during this time, ensuring customers receive the recycling machines within a short time.
Polystar says the delivery time for standard recycling machines like the Repro-Flex 85, Repro-One and Repro-Air is 30 to 45 days.
The funding would go toward projects that bolster domestic battery manufacturing and recycling.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued two notices of intent to provide $2.91 billion to boost production of advanced batteries that are critical to rapidly growing clean energy industries, including electric vehicles (EVs) and energy storage, as directed by the infrastructure law.
The department intends to fund battery materials refining and production plants, battery cell and pack manufacturing facilities and recycling facilities that create good-paying clean energy jobs. The funding is expected to be made available in the coming months and will ensure the United States can produce batteries, as well as the materials that go into them, to increase economic competitiveness, energy independence and national security.
In June 2021, the DOE published a 100-day review of the large-capacity battery supply chain, pursuant to Executive Order 14017, America’s Supply Chains. The review recommended establishing domestic production and processing capabilities for critical materials to support a fully domestic end-to-end battery supply chain. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act allocates nearly $7 billion to strengthen the U.S. battery supply chain, which includes producing and recycling critical minerals without new extraction or mining and sourcing materials for domestic manufacturing.
“As electric cars and trucks continue to grow in popularity within the United States and around the world, we must seize the chance to make advanced batteries—the heart of this growing industry—right here at home,” says U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “With funding from bipartisan infrastructure law, we’re making it possible to establish a thriving battery supply chain in the United States.”
With the global lithium-ion battery market expected to grow rapidly over the next decade, DOE says it hopes to make it possible for the U.S. to be prepared for market demand. Responsible and sustainable domestic sourcing of the critical materials used to make lithium-ion batteries—lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite—will help close the gap in supply chain disruptions and accelerate battery production in America.
Funding from the infrastructure law will allow DOE to support the creation of new, retrofitted, and expanded domestic facilities for battery recycling and the production of battery materials, cell components and battery manufacturing. The funding will also support research, development and demonstration of second-life applications for batteries once used to power EVs, as well as new processes for recycling, reclaiming and adding materials back into the battery supply chain.
The company’s steelmaking business, which includes the recently acquired FPT, contributed substantially to its record financial performance.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., headquartered in Cleveland, has reported record full-year and fourth-quarter results for the period ended Dec. 31, 2021.
Fourth-quarter 2021 consolidated revenues totaled $5.3 billion compared with prior-year fourth-quarter consolidated revenues of $2.3 billion.
For the fourth quarter of 2021, Cleveland-Cliffs generated net income of $899 million, or $1.69 per diluted share. This included $47 million of charges, or 9 cents per diluted share, from amortization of inventory step-up and acquisition-related expenses. This compares with net income of $74 million, or 14 cents per diluted share, recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020, which included $44 million of charges, or 10 cents per diluted share, of acquisition-related costs and amortization of inventory step-up, according to the company
Fourth-quarter 2021 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was $1.5 billion compared with $286 million in the fourth quarter of 2020.
From the cash generated during the fourth quarter of 2021, Cleveland-Cliffs says it used $761 million to acquire Ferrous Processing and Trading Co., with the remainder used to pay down approximately $150 million in principal debt.
The company says it also reduced its pension and other postemployment benefits liabilities, net of assets, by approximately $1 billion in the quarter primarily as a result of actuarial gains and strong returns on assets. The full-year 2021 liability reduction, net of assets, was approximately $1.3 billion, which also included company contributions.
For the full year, Cleveland-Cliffs reported consolidated revenues of $20.4 billion compared with $5.3 billion in the previous year.
Net income was $3 billion, or $5.36 per diluted share. This compares with a 2020 net loss of $81 million, or 32 cents per diluted share.
For the full year of 2021, adjusted EBITDA was $5.3 billion compared with $353 million in 2020.
The Cliffs board of directors has authorized a new share repurchase program for outstanding common shares. Under the share repurchase program, the company can buy up to a maximum of $1 billion worth of shares, via acquisitions in the open market or privately negotiated transactions.
In the news release announcing fourth-quarter and full-year earnings, Cliffs Chairman, President and CEO Lourenco Goncalves says, “During the last two years, we completed the construction and started operating our flagship state-of-the-art direct reduction plant and also acquired and paid for the acquisition of two big steel companies and a major scrap company. The results we achieved in 2021 are a clear demonstration of how powerful Cleveland-Cliffs has become, as our revenues grew more than 10 times from $2 billion in 2019 to over $20 billion in 2021. All this growth was profitable growth, generating $5.3 billion of adjusted EBITDA and $3 billion of net income this past year. Our strong cash flow generation allowed us to not only reduce our diluted share count by 10 percent but also to bring our leverage down to a very healthy level of just 1x adjusted EBITDA.”
Goncalves says the company’s quarterly results “demonstrate the disciplined approach to supply that is fundamental to us.” He adds, “During Q3 of last year, we realized that our automotive clients would not be able to resolve their supply chain issues in Q4, and therefore demand pull from the sector would be weak. That would come on top of the widely expected lighter demand from service centers in Q4. As such, we elected not to chase weak demand and instead accelerated maintenance forward to Q4 at several of our steel production and finishing facilities. These actions had a short-term impact on our unit costs in Q4 but should benefit our 2022 results."
He describes the company as the largest steel supplier of the automotive sector in the United States “by a very large margin.”
Goncalves continues, “Through our massive utilization of both HBI (hot-briquetted iron) in our blast furnaces and prime scrap in our BOFs (basic oxygen furnaces), we are now able to stretch hot metal, reduce coke rate and reduce CO2 emissions to a new international benchmark level for steel companies with product mix similar to ours. That’s particularly relevant when our clients in the automotive sector compare our emissions performance against their other major steel suppliers in countries like Japan, South Korea, France, Austria, Germany, Belgium and a few others. Said another way, through operational changes we have already implemented and that do not depend on breakthrough technologies or massive investment, Cleveland-Cliffs is setting a new world benchmark in CO2 emissions for steel suppliers of higher quality steels to the automotive sector.”
He predicts a “phenomenal year” for the company in 2022, noting that steel demand is rebounding, particularly in the automotive sector. “Based on our recently renewed contracts, we are now selling the vast majority of our fixed-price contractual volumes at substantially higher selling prices,” Goncalves continues. “Even at the steel futures curve as of today, we would expect to see higher average selling prices for our steel in 2022 than in 2021. As we look forward to delivering another stellar year in 2022 and with our limited needs for capex, we are now comfortable to implement shareholder-focused actions ahead of our original expectations.”
Cleveland-Cliffs includes the operations of FPT in its steelmaking segment.
Full-year 2021 steel product volume of 15.9 million net tons consisted of 32 percent coated, 31 percent hot-rolled, 18 percent cold-rolled, 6 percent plate, 4 percent stainless and electrical and 9 percent other, including slabs and rail. Fourth-quarter 2021 steel product volume of 3.4 million net tons consisted of 34 percent coated, 29 percent hot-rolled, 17 percent cold-rolled, 7 percent plate, 5 percent stainless and electrical and 8 percent other, including slabs and rail.
Full-year 2021 steelmaking revenues of $19.9 billion included approximately $7.7 billion, or 38 percent of sales, to the distributors and converters market; $5.4 billion, or 27 percent of sales, to the infrastructure and manufacturing market; $4.7 billion, or 24 percent of sales, to the automotive market; and $2.1 billion, or 11 percent of sales, to steel producers. Fourth-quarter 2021 steelmaking revenues of $5.2 billion included approximately $2 billion, or 38 percent of sales, to the distributors and converters market; $1.5 billion, or 29 percent of sales, to the infrastructure and manufacturing market; $1.1 billion, or 22 percent of sales, to the automotive market; and $552 million, or 11 percent of sales to steel producers.
Full-year 2021 steelmaking cost of goods sold of $15.4 billion included depreciation, depletion and amortization of $855 million and amortization of inventory step-up charges of $161 million. Full-year steelmaking segment adjusted EBITDA of $5.4 billion included $232 million of selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses. Fourth-quarter 2021 steelmaking cost of goods sold of $3.9 billion included depreciation, depletion and amortization of $222 million and amortization of inventory step-up charges of $32 million. Fourth-quarter 2021 steelmaking segment adjusted EBITDA of $1.5 billion included $52 million of SG&A expense.
Because of the successful renewal of relevant fixed-price sales contracts and based on the current 2022 futures curve, which implies an average hot-rolled coil steel index price of $925 per net ton for the remainder of the year, Cleveland-Cliffs says it expects its 2022 average selling price to be approximately $1,225 per net ton.
In comparison, in 2021 when the hot-rolled coil steel index price averaged approximately $1,600 per net ton, its average selling price was $1,187 per net ton.
BASF Heraeus (China) Metal Resource Co. Ltd. will offer precious metal recycling solutions in China.
German companies BASF and Heraeus have agreed to form a joint venture to recover precious metals from spent automotive catalysts in Pinghu, China. The companies will have an equal ownership stake in the new company, BASF Heraeus (China) Metal Resource Co. Ltd. The founding of the legal entity is targeted for the first quarter of this year, following the approval of the relevant authorities. Construction is planned to begin in 2022, with operations starting in 2023, according to a joint press release.
China has limited natural resources in platinum group metals (PGMs), consisting predominately of platinum, palladium and rhodium, and strongly relies on imports. Recycling scrap materials, such as those recovered from spent automotive catalytic converters, enable a circular economy. Recycled precious metals are furthermore very environmentally friendly and have as much as a 90 percent lower CO2 footprint than primary metals from a mine.
“Through the partnership with Heraeus, we will bring best-in-class pyrometallurgy technology for the recovery of precious metals from spent automotive catalysts in China and help improve resource utilization for high-tech and other companies that use precious metals,” says Tim Ingle, vice president, BASF Precious Metals Refining, Chemicals & Battery Recycling. “BASF’s leading position in automotive catalysts recycling and our combined expertise in precious metals will provide customers with a world-class circular economy solution to re-use precious metals in China.”
Marius Vigener, vice president of Business Line Chemicals at Heraeus Precious Metals, says, “This JV builds on our already strong presence in China within the wet-chemical recycling industry. Recycled precious metals minimize emissions and will enable our customers to reduce their CO2 footprint. This will support China in the development of its circular economy and contribute significantly to the stability of local precious metal supplies.”
The new factory is expected to create 100 new jobs, BASF and Heraeus say.
BASF’s Catalysts division is the leading supplier of environmental and process catalysts, while Heraeus Precious Metals is a leading provider of precious metals services and products.
The regional office also serves as a technology and distribution center.
Vecoplan LLC, headquartered in Archdale, North Carolina, has expanded its national footprint with a new office and technology facility in Eastvale, California. Referred to as Vecoplan West, the Southern California location hosts sales and after-sales support offices and a distribution facility for spare and replacement parts. It also serves as a technology center that offers product trials of Vecoplan shredders.
The site’s official grand opening celebration will be Thursday, March 17, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The event will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, facility tours, entertainment, food and drinks and shredding demonstrations of plastic, wood and paper materials. Vecoplan products also will be on display.
Customers, suppliers, dealers and prospective customers are encouraged to RSVP via the event landing page, which will be continuously updated with details as they are confirmed. Media representatives and local officials also invited to attend.
Vecoplan LLC is the North American subsidiary of Germany-based Vecoplan AG. In addition to the new regional office in California, Vecoplan LLC has a Midwest office in Indiana. The company manufactures shredding equipment and recycling systems for virtually any material, selling into plastics, wood, biomass, waste and recycling and waste-to-energy markets.