Spain’s €450/tonne plastic tax faces further delays

LONDON (ICIS)–Spain’s €450/tonne plastics tax faces further delays as a new draft of the government’s bill on waste and contaminated soil is sent through parliament for debate.

Sources in the recycled polyethylene terephthalate (R-PET) market have said the tax may not come into effect until early 2022.

The tax was widely expected to come into effect by the end of June or early July 2021.

SINGLE-USE
As well as the tax on plastics, the bill includes targets to reducing the consumption of single use plastics in items such as plastic drinks glasses, bottle caps and food packaging intended for immediate consumption by 50% by 2026 and by 70% by 2030, compared to 2022 levels.

Reusable alternatives or other non-plastic materials will be encouraged in order to achieve this.

From 1 January 2023, a yet-to-be determined surcharge will be added to certain items to discourage their use and will be paid by the consumer upon purchase.

The bill may face further amendments as the draft is discussed in parliament.

Front page picture source: Seung-il Ryu/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Additional reporting by Miguel Fernandez-Rodriguez

Click here to see the impact of packaging on the petrochemical industry on the ICIS Packaging Topic Page