Together with a group of international investors, German entrepreneur Philipp Althöfer, managing director of Aerocycle GmbH and PWA Recycling Concept GmbH, wants to build industrial-scale recycling capacities for beverage cartons. The plan is to start up facilities in several regions of the world as of 2028 with a total capacity equivalent to around one-third of global liquid containerboard packaging production.
According to Aerocycle, the planned total investment volume is €1bn. However, the contract negotiations have not yet concluded, Mr Althöfer confirmed.
First facility planned in Dormagen, Germany
Apart from the international plans, Aerocycle is pursuing construction of its own recycling facility at the company’s headquarters in Dormagen, Germany. This plant is to reach an input capacity of 37,500 tonnes per year and is slated to begin operations in 2027. The aim is to separate the raw materials from beverage cartons, especially fibres, polymers and aluminium, into mono-material fractions which can then be used as secondary raw materials in the circular economy.
The recycling plant will use NIR-supported dry sorting technology, according to Mr Althöfer. The process works without water, and the input material's potential microbial load is reduced via thermal and/or UVC treatment.
Aerocycle is active in confidential document destruction and beverage carton recycling and produces a cellulose-based insulation material.
