SIRC becomes a majority shareholder in Masab: The Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC) — a wholly owned subsidiary of KSA’s sovereign wealth fund the Public Investment Fund — acquired a 60% share in Masab Plastic Factory Company, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

About Masab: Masab collects plastic scrap materials from households and recycles them into secondary raw materials (recycled materials that can be used in manufacturing processes) mostly for export purposes. The company specializes in the export of PET flakes — small fragments of plastic waste cut up and crushed, then heated and molded into a variety of shapes, usually plastic bottles. Masab caters to fiber and bottle manufacturers in Australia, India, Thailand, Turkey, and the UK.

SIRC is on a roll: SIRC signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia’s state-owned National Agricultural Development Company (Nadec) in February to jointly recycle 400k tons of biowaste annually with the goal of converting the refuse into organic fertilizers.

And there’s plenty of plastic to recycle: Saudi Arabia alone accounts for over 67% of GCC plastic resins production, a market overview by the Saudi Plastics & Petrochemicals Trade Exhibition revealed. The country also accounts for 61% of polymer demand in the GCC — the largest in the region. The consumer packaging industry is at the forefront of polymer use, with the construction sector trailing behind.

The move may help work toward KSA’s Circular Carbon Economy National Program: The kingdom published targets to divert 82% of all landfill waste in October, earmarking USD 27-32 bn to recycle 42% and compost 35% of its waste by 2035. PIF intends to invest USD 11 bn by 2035 to increase recycling, with the support of SIRC.

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