A report on the state of Creative Recycling System’s operations reveals approximately 30 million pounds of glass are stored at company sites in six states.
Filed on Sept. 4, the long-awaited inventory report culminates a month-long review of company operations by Creative’s receiver, Robert Swett. With the company bankrupt and in search of a buyer – and also entangled in a multimillion dollar lawsuit – Swett’s findings suggest a massive glass cleanup is in store.
According to the report, “approximately 30 million pounds of CRT glass inventory [is] stored in various locations throughout six states.” Those states are Florida (approximately 6 million pounds), Illinois (1.5 million pounds), Kentucky (444,400 pounds), Maryland (7.6 million pounds), North Carolina (8.8 million pounds) and South Carolina (5.5 million pounds).
The Florida and North Carolina totals are spread between two facilities each, while the others represent single-facility stockpiles. There was no “legacy glass” found at the company’s remaining locations in Connecticut, Georgia, New York or Tennessee, the report states.
Creative is hoping to have a bit more time to get its glass recycled. “CRS has recently applied to the six states for a variance from the 75 percent recycling requirement for 2014 in an effort to mitigate any penalties with not meeting the annual recycling requirement,” Swett’s report states. “This will alleviate CRS’ efforts towards glass recycling, allowing it to focus cash on other areas within the company that are more immediate.”
The CRT rule requires firms to recycle 75 percent of their glass inventory by the end of the year, but states can grant variances on a case-by-case basis.
The glass in need of processing includes “separated funnel and panel glass, mixed funnel and panel glass, and broken tubes with steel belts mixed in,” Swett’s report states. The company had been unable to pay for end-of-life recycling of glass “due to its liquidity crisis over the last 18 months.”
With current per-pound recycling costs ranging from 6 to 15 cents, CRS will need to pay at least $1.8 million and as much as $4.5 million to send the glass downstream. The report cites costs ranging from 6 to 12 cents on the pound.
All that said, the report identifies three potential buyers that “have indicated a strong interest in the vertical integration of CRS into their model”: Colt Refining and Recycling, Kuusakoski US and CIMMA Recycling. In addition, three private equity groups have also emerged as potential buyers for the firm, according to the report, with all interest deriving from CRS’ “true differentiator – the balance maintained between the company’s reuse and end-of-life businesses.”