New regulation increases German waste export

The “Gewerbeabfallverordnung” regulation, which makes Germany the first country in the EU to strengthen laws on recycling of waste, is already having positive effects on the export of secondary fuels from Germany.

Resource management company Geminor is experiencing an increased interest in export of RDF and SRF from several waste facilities all over Germany. The new regulations on the sorting of German waste leads to higher demand, especially from the Nordic markets. As of early February, Geminor started exporting secondary fuels from Germany to Sweden, and is now also commencing export to the Netherlands.

Geminor Country Manager in Germany, Andreas Hefler, comments on the increasing importance of the German waste fuels market.  

– The new German regulation undoubtedly has an impact on the country’s export of waste. Better sorting means higher quality secondary fuels, which is important for the off-takers. A regulation demanding 30 percent material recycling of waste is about to make Germany the most sustainable country in relation to waste handling in the EU. As a result of this – and the uncertainties surrounding Brexit – the Nordics and other WtE markets are now giving Germany more attention, says Andreas Hefler.

In addition to plants in Sweden, two major plants in the Netherlands will receive 25 000 tonnes of German RDF from Geminor in 2019.

– Geminor will see an increase in export from several German waste producers in 2019. From the Kiel region we will export 10 000 tonnes of RDF to Sweden via the port of Malmö. The district of Hamburg will provide us with 5000 tonnes of refined RDF, and from the Düsseldorf region we will handle the export of approximately 10 000 tonnes of RDF to Sweden. Key volumes will be transported by Ro Ro ferries, but we are also increasing our focus on transport by train.