Veolia announced actions to expand its hazardous waste treatment and disposal business in North America through investment, acquisitions and capacity expansion. The company announced c.$350 million in global investments worldwide, including three new U.S. acquisitions in Massachusetts and California and reaffirmed plans to expand existing facilities.
As reshoring drives the growth of US manufacturing industries and medical technologies continue to advance, hazardous waste treatment and disposal capacity must anticipate this demand. Veolia鈥檚 global leadership in hazardous waste management allows the company to meet these needs, ensure environmental security for communities, and provide safe, proven solutions for industrial hazardous waste.
In Massachusetts, the company has acquired New England Disposal Technologies and New England MedWaste. With these acquisitions, Veolia now operates the state鈥檚 only permitted medical waste disposal facility, as well as two of the state鈥檚 three permitted household hazardous waste disposal sites. The acquisitions also expand Veolia鈥檚 leadership in serving the Massachusetts healthcare and life science industries.
In California, the company has acquired Ingenium, a leading waste management service firm specializing in packaging, transportation, recycling and disposal of hazardous, non-hazardous, biological, universal and radioactive waste. This builds on a prior strategic partnership between the two companies to lock in guaranteed high-temperature treatment capacity for customers at Veolia incinerators.
Veolia, which owns six high-temperature incinerators at three sites in the United States (Port Arthur, TX 鈥� Gum Springs, AR 鈥� Sauget, IL) also gave an update on the expansion of its unique high temperature hazardous waste treatment facility in Gum Springs, Ark., which has been undergoing a multi-year expansion that will make it one of the most technologically advanced and environmentally sustainable facilities of its kind in the world. When the facility starts up it will progressively bring new permitted incineration capacity to the market, much of it already contracted as part of long-term agreements.
The new incinerator design incorporates energy recovery to produce power for the site and therefore is subject to the EPA鈥檚 recycling designation of H050 for wastes received for treatment. This designation, coupled with the multiple environmental awards already received by the project, further reinforces Veolia’s position as a provider of environmentally sustainable waste management solutions. This ability to turn waste into a resource and to design facilities that are both essential for the regions and increasingly virtuous perfectly aligns with the ambitions set out in Veolia鈥檚 strategic GreenUp program, which aims to depollute, decarbonize, and preserve resources.
In addition to these state-of-the-art high temperature incinerators, Veolia also owns 49 transport and transfer platforms in 29 states as well as significant capacities for the recycling of liquid hazardous waste and electronic waste. Thanks to this wide range of solutions and facilities, the Group is able to efficiently meet the growing needs of local industrial players.
Bob Cappadona, President and Chief Executive Officer of Veolia鈥檚 North American Environmental Solutions and Services business said: 鈥淥ur team is proud to be at the forefront of Veolia鈥檚 plans to lead the hazardous waste industry, by investing in growth, expanded capacity and new environmental technologies. The teams at New England Disposal Technologies, New England MedWaste and Ingenium are outstanding performers and are aligned with our GreenUp strategy, our purpose-driven and our customer-centric approach. Together we are positioned to make a real difference for the industry and the planet.鈥�
Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia said this week during a thematic event on the subject of hazardous waste organized in northern France at one of the largest high-temperature incinerators in Europe: 鈥淗azardous waste treatment is becoming a strategic bottleneck for many industries, especially those undergoing transformation or reshoring production, it’s also an essential topic for human health and ensuring environmental security. By reinforcing our footprint through both organic investment and acquisition, we are positioning Veolia to remain ahead of the curve. Our global presence, the combination of our expertise, innovative technologies, and ability to scale rapidly enable us to deliver tailored, high-value-added services, while accelerating time-to-market for innovative waste treatment solutions.鈥�