ITPLAST Giugno/Luglio 2026 | Page 20

ECONOMY AND MARKET

Recycling development scenario in Italy( 2040)

strategy. The plastics sector has seen significant growth over the last decade, with revenues rising from approximately EUR 400 million in 2014 to over EUR 1.1 million in 2022. In recent years, however, the sector has experienced a contraction, primarily due to the competitive pressure from non-EU products and regulatory uncertainties.

Italian technology plast / June-July 2026

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Development of the bioplastics sector

Economic impact of the various scenarios

raw material market dynamics and growing international competition.

AN INCREASINGLY COMPLEX REGULATORY FRAMEWORK The report highlights how the sector is currently operating in a particularly challenging landscape characterised by geopolitical tensions, high energy costs and an increasingly complex European regulatory framework. In recent years, the plastics industry has been affected by numerous legislative measures regarding both environmental sustainability and the regulation of products and chemical substances. These include the EU regulation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical Substances( REACH), the Single-Use Plastics directive( SUP), the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation( ESPR) and the EU Waste Framework Directive, which introduces new waste reuse and recycling targets. Added to these measures is the so-called Plastics Own Resource system, which consists of a contribution of 0.80 euro per kg of non-recycled plastic packaging waste. According to the authors of the report, this set of measures has contributed to Europe’ s“ regulatory tsunami,” with significant impacts on compliance costs for enterprises. In recent months, however, the European Commission has begun to consider a more balanced approach placing greater emphasis on industrial competitiveness. Part of this new effort are initiatives such as the Clean Industrial Deal and the Omnibus simplification packages aimed at reducing the bureaucratic burden and bolstering the competitiveness of European companies.

CIRCULARITY AS A DEVELOPMENT LEVER Another key aspect of the report concerns the role of circularity in transforming the plastics industry. According to analyses conducted by Teha, the combination of mechanical, chemical and organic recycling could enable the recovery of up to 80 % of plastic waste in Europe by 2040. In the case of Italy, a particularly favourable scenario envisages investments of over EUR 2.6 billion in the development of chemical recycling. This would allow the treatment of approximately 13.6 % of plastic waste and, in combination with mechanical recycling, the recovery of up to 4.5 million tons of plastics waste by 2040. From this perspective, recycled materials could cover up to 45 % of Italy’ s domestic demand for plastic raw materials.

BIO-BASED PLASTICS BETWEEN GROWTH AND NEW CHALLENGES Alongside recycling, bio-based plastics also represent a key element of the sector’ s circularity

PRIORITIES FOR STRENGTHENING THE SUPPLY CHAIN Based on these considerations, the report identifies a series of policy actions deemed necessary to bolster competitiveness and support the circular transition of the supply chain. Priorities include the definition of a national strategy dedicated to plastics, the simplification of authorisation procedures for recycling plants and the development of a secondary raw materials market. The report also emphasises the importance of introducing economic measures to encourage the use of recycled and bio-based materials, as well as strengthening the extended producer responsibility system.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SCENARIOS Finally, the report includes a scenario analysis to assess the potential economic effects of policies aimed at supporting the sector. According to Teha’ s simulations, strengthening the supply chain’ s competitiveness and productivity could generate up to EUR 3 billion in additional added value, bringing the total to approximately EUR 18.3 billion. Considering the indirect and secondary effects on Italy’ s national economy, the overall impact could reach EUR 10 billion. From an employment perspective, this scenario could translate into the creation of approximately 30,000 new direct jobs along the plastics value chain and over 83,000 jobs overall when including the satellite industries. Conversely, the lack of measures to support the sector’ s competitiveness could result in a loss of approximately EUR 4.7 billion in added value and over 55,000 jobs. During the presentation of the report, Franco Meropiali, President of PlasticsEurope Italia, emphasised how the competitiveness of the plastics industry is closely linked to its ability to support the transition to more sustainable models, promoting technological innovation and circularity. The institutional representatives also reiterated the sector’ s importance for Italy’ s national economy and the need for industrial policies aimed at its development and at preventing regulatory constraints and excessive energy costs from weakening a strategic mainstay of the Italian manufacturing system. www. plastmagazine. it