Ragn-Sells and Vilokan give old solutions a new future 

On 3 September, roughly 80 guests gathered to celebrate the inauguration of Solvent Recycling Solution (SRS) – a new, jointly owned facility between environmental company Ragn-Sells and environmental technology company Vilokan Group. 

The facility, which is located directly adjacent to Ragn-Sells’ facility in Högbytorp, has the capacity to process up to 20,000 tons of waste-classified solvents per year from various industries. 

SRS is a concrete example of how Swedish industry can contribute to the green transition by giving old resources new life. Through advanced technology, solvents that would otherwise be wasted are recycled – and converted into new raw materials with a significantly lower climate impact. 

During the inauguration, a short stage program was held led by Susanna Lind, Sustainability Manager for Recycling Sweden, together with Erik Gustafsson, Key Account Manager (KAM) from the Treatment & Detox business area and project manager for the facility. The main speaker was Kristina Alvendal, the government's appointed industry coordinator for the Acceleration Office, which is tasked with driving the green transition. 

"This facility is an incredible step forward in the right direction and is a good example of Swedish business and industry leading the way for the green transition," says Kristina Alvendal in an interview. 

See the full interview with Kristina Alvendal.

An important piece of the puzzle in the circular strategy 

Anders Kihl, Chief Strategy Officer and R&D Director at Ragn-Sells, also participated in the inauguration and emphasised the importance of making the most of what we already have: 

“If we are serious about a sustainable society, we must use what we already have - over and over again. That is why the inauguration of SRS is very important. We still need continued support and momentum in the system to scale up solutions like this,” says Anders Kihl. 

He also highlighted the importance of collaboration and systemic change, and expressed his support for the Acceleration Office's role in driving development: 

“We are very happy about initiatives like the Acceleration Office. This is exactly the kind of coordination with high levels of ambition that is required to solve complex, systemic challenges. I feel optimistic about the possibility of being able to more quickly untie knots that are otherwise very difficult to solve in individual processes,” he says. 

Watch the interview from the inauguration with Anders Kihl.

Business Project Manager Erik Gustafsson agrees with Anders Kihl. 

“This is an important piece of the puzzle in reducing the industry's climate impact and I am really proud of what we have achieved here,” he says. 

The inauguration ended after a traditional ribbon cutting when the guests were given a guided tour of the facility, led by some of the experts behind the project. 

How it works 

Ragn-Sells collects waste-classified solvents such as acetone, ethanol, methanol and glycol – substances that are currently produced primarily from fossil, virgin resources. In the SRS facility, these substances are purified using advanced separation technology. 

The recycled solvent can be sold on the open market, but in most cases goes to the Vilokan-owned company Arom-dekor Kemi, where it is used as a raw material in new production of, for example, cleaning agents, disinfectants, washer fluid and glycol products. 

The new products maintain the same high quality as newly produced solvents, but with up to 87 percent lower climate impact.* 

*This figure is based on a comparative climate analysis with a life-cycle perspective of recycled and fossil virgin solvents. The analysis has been reviewed by an independent party. 

For further information, please contact:
Anders Kihl, Chief Strategy Officer and R&D Director, Ragn-Sells Group, +46 70-927 2684, anders.kihl@ragnsells.com
Erik Gustafsson, KAM & Business Project Manager, Ragn-Sells, +46 70 927 28 48, erik.gustafsson2@ragnsells.com
Debby Porter Laffitte, Press Officer, Ragn-Sells, +46 10 723 24 00, press@ragnsells.com