recycling plant : Alpek bids for CarbonLite's Pennsylvania recycling plant
In a statement, Alpek confirmed the timing set forth by the bankruptcy documents. It declined to comment further because it is company policy not to discuss ongoing negotiations. CarbonLite is scheduled to conduct an auction for the plant on 17 May. The court is scheduled to hold a sales hearing on 26 May. The sale could close by 3 June. If CarbonLIte does not receive a better offer, DAK Americas could acquire the plant.
The Reading plant processes post-consumer plastic products made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These are converted into food-grade recycled PET (R-PET) pellets.
CarbonLite had completed construction of the Reading plant in August 2020, and should be fully operational by now, according to court documents submitted by CarbonLite. Reading can process 85m lb/year (39m kg/year) of R-PET pellets.
CarbonLite has two other recycling plants in Riverside, California, and Dallas, Texas. The Riverside plant started operations in November 2011. It can process 115m lb/year of R-PET pellets. Dallas started in late 2017, and it can process 85m lb/year of R-PET pellets.
CarbonLite also owns PinnPack, which makes food-grade thermoformed PET and R-PET packaging products. PinnPack owns a plant in Oxnard, California.
CarbonLite bills its recycling business as one of the largest producers of food-grade R-PET pellets in the US. It makes PET pellets from bales of used plastic bottles and from R-PET flakes.
Alpek is based in Mexico, and it makes PET. It is part of the Mexican conglomerate Alfa.