WM Waste Management

By Will Feuer

Waste Management Inc. said it has agreed to buy a controlling interest in Avangard Innovative's U.S. business, which will operate as an independent company called Natura PCR.

Natura will be expected to grow recycling capacity to produce an estimated 400 million pounds a year of post-consumer resin within five years, Waste Management said.

"WM's controlling interest in Natura PCR positions us to grow and scale rapidly in the emerging PCR space," Waste Management Chief Executive Officer Jim Fish said. "Today, there is so much untapped potential to reuse film, which impacts many of our commercial customers. We can help our customers close the loop and bring more recycled materials to the store shelf."

Avangard and Waste Management have been working with materials-science company Dow Inc. on plastics-recycling initiatives. Dow's North America commercial vice president of packaging and specialty plastics Nestor de Mattos said the deal will advance the companies' goals of diverting plastics from landfills.

After the deal closes, which is expected late this year, Natura PCR will focus on the mechanical recycling of film and flexible plastics, and on converting these materials to PCR that can be used to make new products, Waste Management said.

Natura PCR plans to grow recycling capabilities at Avangard's existing plant in Waller, Texas, and build new plant capacity in the Midwest. Avangard and affiliated entities will hold a collective minority equity position in Natura PCR, while Waste Management will primarily own and control the business, the company said.

Financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed in a press release announcing the agreement.

Write to Will Feuer at Will.Feuer@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 13, 2022 08:32 ET (12:32 GMT)

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