Green Group, a leading regional player in the circular economy, has published its 2024 Sustainability Report, outlining the group’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and the impact of its operations on the industry and the communities where it operates.

The report highlights how Green Group applies the circular economy at industrial scale through recycling, resource recovery and integrated environmental services, helping reduce the consumption of primary resources and limit environmental impact.

Founded in 2002, Green Group operates an integrated circular economy ecosystem across Romania, Lithuania and Slovakia, bringing together specialized companies that cover the entire resource management chain. To date, the group has invested more than €250 million in industrial infrastructure, technologies and recycling capacity.

In 2024, Green Group recycled more than 350,000 tons of waste across its operations. Key performance highlights include:

• Plastics recycling (GreenTech): Approximately 140,000 tons of plastic waste processed annually, resulting in over 100,000 tons of finished products – PET flakes, rPET granules and polyester fibers – used as secondary raw materials across Europe. GreenTech also achieved an average 11% reduction in electricity consumption per ton of product compared to the previous year.
• LDPE plastics (ECSO): Continued operations in Lithuania and launched a new sorting and processing line in 2024 to increase efficiency and improve the quality of recycled materials.
• Glass recycling (GreenGlass): Achieved a recycling rate of over 79% and a material purity level of 99.99%, contributing to lower energy consumption and emissions compared to primary glass production.
• WEEE recycling (GreenWEEE): Market leader in Romania, operating three plants with a total capacity of 140,000 tons per year and a material recovery rate of over 98%, ensuring the safe treatment of hazardous substances and reintegration of recovered materials into the economy.
• Industrial waste management (Verdum): Recorded a recovery rate of over 80% at the Chișcădaga facility, in line with landfill reduction objectives.
• Hazardous and non-hazardous waste (Žalvaris): Managed over 63,000 tons of waste in Lithuania and Latvia, 46% of which was hazardous, through an integrated collection and treatment system compliant with environmental regulations.

The report also details progress in resource efficiency. Green Group uses water recirculation systems and aims to increase the share of recirculated water from around 5% to 20% by 2026. At group level, around 90% of operations were powered by renewable energy in 2024. In addition, Gold Standard–validated projects run by GreenTech helped avoid more than 180,000 tons of CO₂ emissions, with an estimated 450,000 tons over the full project lifecycle.

Green Group employed more than 2,400 people across Romania, Lithuania, Latvia and Slovakia in 2024. The group continued to invest in occupational health and safety, with 7 of its 11 companies certified under ISO 45001 and a continued zero-accident objective. Women accounted for approximately 35% of employees, including in management roles.

On the governance side, Green Group updated its ethics and compliance policies, investigated 100% of ethical reports, and required all top management members to submit annual conflict-of-interest declarations. Internal ESG data collection and verification systems were also strengthened to align with European reporting requirements.

“Circular economy is not a branding exercise. It is a tough industrial reality that requires major investments, complex processes and daily responsibility. The 2024 Sustainability Report shows how we manage waste, what resources we recover and the impact we generate. Our focus remains clear: decarbonisation, digitalisation of processes and expansion of capacities. For these objectives to be sustainable in the long term, a public policy framework is essential to create a functional market for recycled materials and support their use in industry,” said Constantin Damov, Chairman of the Board of Green Group.