CEO Review 2025: Growth Projects Move into the Construction Phase – Finland’s Largest Plastic Recycling Plant Takes Shape in Hyvinkää

01.04.2026 -

Our significant investment in circular economy growth projects moved into the implementation phase in 2025, as both the plastic recycling plant and the biocomposite factory received investment decisions and construction at our Hyvinkää circular economy hub got under way. At the Oulu sorting plant, we improved availability and received larger volumes of material than in the previous year. The growth set out in our strategy is now tangibly visible.

Strategy-driven growth materialised into investment decisions

Syklo’s strategy is to provide waste treatment services to corporate clients nationally, from Oulu and Hyvinkää. We are not involved in waste collection; our focus is on industrial-scale processing of waste, with the aim of maximising the commercial value and recovery potential of each fraction. 2025 was the year our strategy moved from plans to concrete action.

The combined value of our investments at the Hyvinkää circular economy hub is approximately €70 million. Once complete, these facilities will employ around 150 people and bring an increase of approximately €50 million in revenue to the company. With a reception capacity of 50,000 tonnes, the plastic recycling plant will increase Finland’s domestic plastic recycling capacity by approximately 50 per cent. It will also be the first facility in Finland to recycle hard plastics at an industrial scale: hard plastics account for half of the plant’s total capacity.

Hyvinkää plastic recycling plant – construction in full swing

The structural work on the plastic recycling plant reached roof height with our partners during the summer of 2025, and the building was made weathertight for equipment installation during the final third of the year. The new 10,000-square-metre building will house the plant’s pre-shredding, sorting, washing, drying, and extrusion processes. Equipment installation began in mid-November 2025 and is scheduled for completion in June 2026. Commissioning and ramp-up will take place between June and October 2026, with deliveries of finished products commencing towards the end of 2026.

Feedstock sourcing for the new plant is focused on the domestic market, while end-product sales are directed internationally. Our new Sykloplast recycled plastic pellet has been designed to meet the high-grade PCR (Post-Consumer Recyclate) requirements of the automotive, electronics, and packaging industries. This opens up significant export opportunities for us.

Biocomposite plant: pilot line moves to Hyvinkää and investment decision for industrial-scale line

During 2025, we relocated the pilot line related to our biocomposite operations from Sastamala to Hyvinkää and carried out a significant upgrade of the equipment. We also exited our Sastamala site. The pilot line was restarted in October. In addition to customer deliveries of Syklocomp products, the line is used for active product and formulation development.

During the year, we made an investment decision to build a new industrial-scale biocomposite production line. The new line, with an annual capacity of 8,000 tonnes, will enable us to meet larger customer needs and pursue international growth in the same automotive and electronics industry segments we are targeting with the end products of the plastic recycling plant. Depending on customer requirements, we use either virgin or recycled-origin pulp as the raw material, alongside polypropylene plastic sourced either from our own recycled plastic pellets or an external material supplier.

Oulu sorting plant: growing volumes and electric crushing

Syklo’s Oulu sorting plant received more corporate waste in 2025 than in the previous year, a total of 67,709 tonnes (2024: 66,091). Syklo is also responsible for material procurement for Oulun Energia’s energy recovery facility located in Laanila, Oulu. The total volume of waste received by the energy recovery facility was 148,044 tonnes (145,943). The recycling rate at our sorting plant was 7.6 per cent (5.9%). The recycling rate fell short of our target (20%), as a planned plastics recovery project for the sorting plant had to be postponed to 2026 following the refinement of the Hyvinkää plastic recycling plant’s timeline.

A new electric crushing line and its electric feed machine, completed towards the end of the year, enable the crushing of recycled wood and other difficult materials requiring separate crushing — without diesel-powered machinery. This investment is aimed at improving our competitiveness and reducing emissions from material handling. We can now phase out diesel-powered mobile crushers, as the fixed electric line handles even challenging materials such as furniture more effectively than mobile equipment.

The share of imported waste was very small in 2025: we received 8,464 tonnes (18,225), exclusively from Norway.

Corporate waste treatment at Hyvinkää also expanded

In addition to serving as the site for our new investments, the Hyvinkää circular economy hub also handles more traditional corporate waste streams. In 2025, we processed 929 tonnes (706) of construction and demolition waste, 2,675 tonnes (2,466) of demolition timber, and 1,066 tonnes (1,680) of commercial and industrial waste. We also acquired approximately two additional hectares of land in Hyvinkää to support future growth. Civil engineering and finishing works on the site were completed in November, and it has been built to meet the criteria required for waste treatment areas. Once the environmental permit process is complete, waste reception and processing operations outside of plastic recycling and biocomposite production will be transferred there.

Our team grows: 30 new recruits in spring 2026

Syklo’s headcount grew in 2025 to establish the operational foundations for our new businesses — including sales, product development, and supply chain functions. In spring 2026, we are preparing for the launch of the Hyvinkää plastic recycling plant by recruiting approximately 30 new employees.

Employee experience and safety are essential factors in ensuring each person’s wellbeing at work, as well as in developing the company’s ability to attract and retain talent. We are actively involved in Oulun Energia Group’s cultural ambassador work, contributing to the development of employee experience and culture goals. Despite our safety efforts, two accidents requiring medical treatment occurred at Syklo in 2025. There were no serious fires at either the Oulu or Hyvinkää operations — all battery-related fire incidents were extinguished by our own staff.

Developing operational management to support growth

As operations scale up, we are placing increasing attention on developing our processes and operational management systems. Building a new ERP system has been one of our most significant development projects of the year. Defining the system and progressing the necessary process descriptions and system integrations has engaged Sykloists across team boundaries. The new plastic recycling and biocomposite plants will be the first to deploy the new system, from the very start of their operations.

Syklo is part of the Oulun Energia Group. You can read the summary of Oulun Energia’s annual and sustainability report in English (full report is in finnish only).

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