The COVID-19 pandemic is not expected to negatively impact the completion of Hawkesbury’s newest industrial plant.

Ecolomondo is building its new thermal decomposition (TDP) facility on a newly constructed extension of Tessier Street, east of Tupper Street.  The plant will shred, break down, and using high heat, convert rubber, plastics, and steel and process them into other materials that can be used in other products.  Once fully operational, the Hawkesbury facility is expected to process a minimum of 14,000 tons of waste per year and produce 5,300 tons per year of recovered carbon black, 42,700 barrels of oil, 1,800 tons of steel, and 1,600 tons of process gas.

Although the company has stated it does not anticipate delays to the completion of the plant as a result of the pandemic, it cannot predict if the pandemic will have any long-term consequences and financial implications.

As of June 30, Ecolomondo estimated that the Hawkesbury plant will begin operations at the end of the fourth quarter of 2020.  The company has ordered 85 per cent of the equipment required for the 46,000 square foot plant, which is located on 13 acres of land.  Commissioning of the equipment will take place during the third quarter of 2020 once construction is complete enough to begin receiving and installing the equipment.

The Ecolomondo plant in Hawkesbury will be composed of four departments.  They are for shredding, processing, thermal processing, recovered carbon black processing, and oil fractionation.  The company estimates that the total cost of the Hawkesbury plant is $37.6 million.  Export Development Canada, a federal bank that supports companies trying to develop new export opportunities, provided a $32.1 million loan and the company itself has paid for the remaining $5 million in capital costs.

Ecolomondo is prioritizing the processing of old tires at its TDP facilities, including the new one in Hawkesbury, because recycled tires yield products with a high commercial value, especially carbon black.

The new Ecolomondo plant is being constructed by Maylan Group Inc. of Hawkesbury.