Egypt’s Suez Canal has been blocked by a massive container vessel, which ran aground the key waterway, and cause delays in global shipments of commodities.
The vessel “Ever Given” got stuck in the southern end of the canal while making a turn on Tuesday. The vessel is still stuck in the canal, which provides the shortest marine route between Europe and Asia. Several tugboats have been deployed to help shift the container ship but didn’t succeed so far. “Ever Given” is 400-metre long and 59-metre wide container ship with a total carrying capacity of around 200.000 tons. The container ship has blocked off a lot of other vessels and tankers from traversing in either direction. The canal is a critical chokepoint because of the large volumes of energy commodities that flow through it.
Photo: Map of the Suez Canal (Source: Google Maps)
It is still not clear how long it will take to free “Ever Given” from the spot. Ships heading both ways and shipment through the canal will be badly affected by the bottlenecks. “Ever Given” is carrying containers bound for Rotterdam in the Netherlands from China.
The good news is that carriers can show their skills in the requested higher level of information services. I received a mail the day after!
Email received of carrier
The bad news is, this won’t be the last time a vessel, with an immense loading capacity, will run into trouble. Shippers are looking for alternatives more and more. For example using the silk road, using the multi modal rail option.
Faster, greener and more reliable container rail services between China and Europe are at the moment also more cost-efficient than the all-water alternative. Urgent container capacity shortages and intense sea freight rate inflation are giving an extra push to rail cargo service links between China and Europe. The traffic recently increased with 10-15% in loads moving overland between China and Europe. With transit times between 16-18 days comparing to around 35 days for Shanghai-Rotterdam 40ft high-cube container moves by sea, speed is certainly a key advantage for rail.
Another alternative you might see at the bigger companies chartering their own ships. Smaller, still expensive but more agile and reliable.
By Roel Wollaert; Dutch PET Recycling _________ Arnhem, 21 April 2020
Some weeks ago, we started with an article about our business during the Corona or COVID-19 crisis. In this article we will give an update on how we are dealing with the circumstances and what we see happening around us.
In our own working process, nothing has changed drastically. We are used to work in a global network where we have contact with our suppliers and customers at a distance. However, not all parties concerned have the availability of all tools. That’s why, sometimes, we have to be patient and understanding. Especially in countries where a lockdown forces you to stay at home and one is not able to contact the bank for a transaction or check upon the Chamber of commerce for a Certificate of Origin.
Using disposable gloves, syringes, insulin pens, masks, catheters etcetera reduces the risks of infections. But it also makes the work process easier and faster because less material has to be sterilized.
In non-medical industries, plastic use is also increasing. Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts forbid reusable cups; the food industry is using more plastic to extend the shelf life and now uses the argument that plastic is more hygienic and easier to use. Restaurants try to survive by offering take away food in…(rPET-made) plastic boxes. Plastic protection screens are used for cashiers in supermarkets. Everywhere around you, more plastic is used due to COVID-19!
One may be worried about the limited volumes entering collection systems. Consumers (recycling) behavior is changing. People are buying bottles, but they don’t bring them back, they store it. Collectors in Asian and African countries are facing restrictions to do their job. Many will be looking at how used PET bottles are returned to the recycling stream during the outbreak. The availability of rPET might become scarce.
Demand for virgin PET has already increased significantly in March as Europeans began to buy food and other necessities in higher volumes. Plans of using more recycled plastic and reduce plastic waste, sometimes, seem to be no longer a top priority.
Another concern is the impact on logistics. Several countries have closed their borders and restricted the movement of goods and people, getting material to and from harbors and recycling units. Until now we only had some minor problems but recently most transport was running smoothly again.
Social distancing will become a way of life the coming months and maybe years. What this will do to our business is not easy to predict. For the time being, the majority of the recycling industry continues to operate without too much problems. Sudden local problems we will be able to handle, as our network is diversified. We will see what the future will bring us.
For now: Stay safe, healthy, and take care of the environment!
On behalf of all employees and agents at Dutch PET Recycling.
By Roel Wollaert; Dutch PET Recycling _________ Arnhem, 27 March 2020
Normally our posts are about market developments and
news within the rPET or circular plastic industry. But the news nowadays is of
course about the Corona virus. It affects all of us around the world. In this article
we will give a brief overview how it has affected us so far and we will share
some thoughts with you.
At Dutch PET Recycling everybody is working at home.
Communication still goes rapidly with video calls and mailing. What we do miss
is the face-to-face contact with our suppliers and customers. We are convinced
that seeing is believing. That’s why we normally visit our suppliers and their
production facilities. The time saved by not travelling we now use online. For
example to promote our new website: www.dutchpetrecycling.com
At the beginning of 2020 the prospects for the
recycling industry were very promising. Awareness about waste reduction and
reducing CO2 emission is constantly growing. People do sort their waste more
and more. Collection of waste becomes more efficient. Governments are setting
targets for recycling and industries are thinking more about sustainable
product designs and commit themselves to use more recycled material.
That all is good news for our suppliers. Some of them
are relatively small companies, where quite a lot of families depend on. As far
as we know now, the virus hasn’t caught them. Besides the health threat of
Corona also an economic crisis is coming. Collecting waste might become more
difficult. That will differ per region and luckily for us and our customers we
have a great network of suppliers.
Sea transport is already facing some problems. Some
ports do have restrictions or are locked down for a period. But most of the
ports are still operating and must do that to keep the necessary (food) chains
working. Also here people are working out of their home (office). This
sometimes causes delay in communication.
Also prices fluctuate a lot. Overall we are very satisfied with our freight
forwarders who constantly think along with us to keep the service as high as
possible.
The good news in relation to our customers is that
most of them operate within the food chain. Plastic packaging for confectionery
or fresh food. Being an essential producer means that you don’t need to go in a
lock down.
We hope and wish that everyone stays healthy. The market
developments before the Corona outbreak looked very promising and we are
convinced that the world will conquer the virus. It will be a matter of time.
The longer it takes the worser the economic crisis will be. But at the end we
think the recycling industry has a promising future ahead and that we will
quickly recover from this temporarily relapse.
Wishing you and all your beloved ones a healthy and
economic fruitful future.
On behalf of all employees and agents at Dutch PET
Recycling.
March 6th
2020 Launch of the European Plastics Pact
About
the European Plastics Pact
Initially
led by France, the Netherlands and Denmark, the European Plastic Pact is a
public-private coalition that forms a European network of companies, states and
other organisations such as NGOs on mastering single-use plastic products and
packaging.
In the face
of the proliferation of plastic waste, the aim of the pact is to set ambitious
common objectives and to encourage cooperation, innovation and harmonisation at
the European level, in order to bring about a truly circular European plastics
economy.
The Pact
relies on the “pioneers” in the plastics value chain and on the most committed
governments, in order to create a bold movement that will pave the way for the
rest of the market.
The Pact
works on all levels to reduce the release of plastics into the environment: by
improving the recyclability and reusability of products by design, by shifting
to a more responsible use of plastics, by increasing collection, sorting and
recycling, and by incorporating more recycled materials into new products and
packaging.
Mastering
the use of plastics in a circular economy
Plastics
are everywhere in our daily lives, bringing many economic and environmental
benefits. Plastics are strong, durable and versatile materials. They enhance
comfort, safety and hygiene. Using plastics packaging can increase the shelf
life of products and reduce fuel costs in transportation of goods, helping to
cut carbon emissions. All this has resulted in a huge surge in plastics
production. Over the past fifty years, the global use of plastics has increased
twentyfold and is still growing.
At the same
time, plastic waste is increasingly becoming a global problem, as reuse and
recycling of plastics have not kept pace. This is because many products and
packaging types are not designed for reuse or effective recycling. Not all use
of plastics is necessary for product functionality. In addition, collection, sorting
and recycling are still underdeveloped. This means a significant proportion of
our plastic waste is still being incinerated or goes to landfill, which
negatively affect carbon emissions. Another part ends up as litter in our
environment, where it may harm wildlife or degrade into potentially harmful
microplastics. While all this valuable material is being wasted, the proportion
of fossil fuel being used to produce new plastics continues to grow (from 6% of
oil production now to an estimated 20% by 2050).
The
common vision
To tackle
plastics waste and pollution at the source, we need to fundamentally rethink
the way we produce, use and reuse plastics. No single organisation or
individual can do this on its own. It requires a systemic shift, involving
collective action by businesses from across the plastics value chain,
governments, and civil society. A common vision aligns all actors on a joint
understanding of what good looks like. It guides the search for solutions and
aligns actions taken in the European Plastics Pact on a common sense of
direction.
For
plastics, the European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy has set out
a vision for a plastics circular economy in the EU. For plastic packaging, the
New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation
in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme, has united more than 400
organisations from across the global plastics packaging value chain behind a
common vision of a circular economy for plastics. These include plastic
packaging producers, consumer goods companies, retailers, companies involved in
the collection, sorting and recycling of plastics, as well as national,
regional and city governments, NGOs, financial institutions, industry
associations, universities and other international organisations such as the
World Economic Forum and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). National
plastics pacts, such as The French National Pact on Plastic Packaging, the
Plastics Pact NL and the UK Plastics Pact have taken action towards the same
common vision for a circular economy for plastics. The European Plastics Pact
adopts this vision, as this provides a global framework for our actions.
Infographic European Plastics Pact
The Goals:
Reusability and recyclabilityby design
To
design all plastic packaging and single-use plastic products brought to the market
by participants to be reusable where possible, and in all cases to be
recyclable by 2025.
Responsible use of plastics
To
shift towards a more responsible use of plastic packaging and single-use
plastic products, aiming for a reduction in virgin plastic products and
packaging of at least 20% (by weight) by 2025, with half of this reduction
coming from an absolute reduction of plastics.
Collection, sorting and recycling
To
raise the collection, sorting and recycling capacity in the involved countries
of all plastics used in packaging and single use products by at least 25
percentage points by 2025 and to reach a quality standard of the output of the
collection, sorting, and recycling process that matches market demand for
recycled plastics.
Use of recycled plastics
To
boost recycled plastics use in new products and packaging as much as possible
by 2025, with plastics-using company achieving an average of at least 30%
recycled plastics (in weight) in their range of products and packaging.
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