License for battery recycling company in Kilwinning suspended

And that means that no waste may be accepted, stored or treated by the company.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has now served two enforcement notices requiring Fenix ​​​​Battery Recycling Ltd. to remove waste batteries that have been on the site of the West Byrehill Industrial Estate for more than six months.

The regulator also announced that the company’s license was partially suspended last year after it failed to comply with a previous enforcement order.

The agency also suspended the company’s approval as an Approved Battery Treatment Operator (ABTO).

The massive fire broke out on the night of Monday, April 8. Firefighters remained on site until the afternoon of Friday, April 12 to extinguish the flames and ensure the safety of the area.

Residents were advised to stay in their homes and close all doors and windows, although no one was injured in the incident.

SEPA has also revealed that Fenix ​​had considered abandoning the Kilwinning site and moving to Glasgow, but no application has been submitted to date.

The only activities the Company can currently carry out under the SEPA regime at the Kilwinning site is the removal of waste to appropriately licensed landfill sites.

SEPA said it had taken enforcement action due to non-compliance with licensing conditions and the site’s infrastructure being destroyed by the fire.

They said that continuing the approved activities at the site in its current state would be considered a risk that could lead to severe environmental pollution and serious harm to human health.

Lin Bunten, SEPA’s COO for Regulatory, Business and Environment, said: “The package of measures we have put in place is in response to a serious incident and is designed to protect the environment and communities around Fenix ​​Battery Recycling Ltd’s site in Kilwinning.”

“The decision to suspend a licence is never taken lightly. However, it is one of the enforcement tools at our disposal and we will use it if we believe it is necessary to prevent a risk of harm to the environment.”

Lin Bunten from SEPA (Image: SEPA)

She added: “The operator is obliged to remove any waste in breach of the licence conditions off-site to an appropriately licensed facility within the dates set out in the enforcement notices.

“The suspension of the Waste Management Licence (WML) will remain in effect until we are satisfied that the conditions set out in the suspension notice have been met – including site infrastructure requirements, a fire protection and mitigation plan and a fire alarm system.

“We partially suspended Fenix ​​​​Battery Recycling Ltd.’s license last year when the company failed to comply with an enforcement order we had previously served on it.

“This prevented any further hazardous waste from arriving on site after 5 p.m. on November 3.”

“We will not hesitate to take further action if necessary, in accordance with our enforcement policy.”

According to SEPA enforcement notices, waste must be disposed of at an appropriately approved facility within the following dates:

• June 24: All unprocessed waste (especially old batteries) that has been in the backyard of the site for more than six months.
• July 13: All treated and unprocessed waste stored on-site for more than six months on the footprint of the fire-damaged building.

Recent investigations into Fenix ​​Battery Recycling Ltd.’s waste tracking system and inspections of the site by SEPA enforcement officers have revealed that unprocessed and treated waste (particularly waste batteries) has remained on site for more than six months without prior SEPA approval.

These are violations of the WML requirements.

In addition, an on-site fire incident investigation report must be submitted to SEPA by June 10.

This must include the circumstances of the incident, the steps taken by the licensee to end the incident and the proposals to prevent a recurrence. This report was due within 14 days of the fire and has not yet been received.

The suspension of Fenix ​​Battery Recycling Ltd.’s WML will remain in place until a series of actions have been taken and their completion confirmed to the satisfaction of SEPA.

In November 2023, SEPA partially revoked the site’s licence after the company failed to comply with a request to reduce the amount of batteries classified as “hazardous waste” under the Hazardous Waste Ordinance 1996 on the site to the permitted tonnage.

Examples include nickel-cadmium and lead-acid batteries.

At the time of the fire, SEPA was preparing another notice regarding the violation of the deadlines for battery storage.

Fenix ​​​​has been contacted for comment.