Valoriza is involved in the modernisation of the La Rioja Ecopark with a new automated packaging sorting plant
The company, which leads the joint venture responsible for managing the Ecopark, is working alongside FCC on the new facility, which will double the packaging processing capacity
La Rioja, 29 September 2026.
The La Rioja Ecopark is making progress with its modernisation programme with the unveiling of a new automated sorting and selection plant for light packaging, a facility being developed by Valoriza Servicios Medioambientales as part of a joint venture with FCC.
The project forms part of the Ecoparque, which is managed by a joint venture led by Valoriza, and will increase processing capacity and improve the recovery of the various materials collected in the yellow bin.
The new plant has been designed to respond to the changes in the selective collection of packaging since the previous facility was commissioned in 2005. The increase in the quantities collected and changes in the composition of the waste made it necessary to have a facility with greater capacity and a higher degree of automation.
The new line will double the input capacity compared with 2024, reaching a nominal capacity of 12,187.5 tonnes per year.
Technology to recover more materials
One of the plant’s key features is the automation of the sorting process. The facility incorporates various physical and optical systems that enable the identification and separation of incoming materials, supplemented by four manual sorting bays designed to ensure the final quality of the different fractions.
Through this process, materials such as PET, HDPE, polypropylene, polystyrene, film, steel, aluminium, cartons, paper and cardboard can be separated to facilitate their subsequent recycling.
During the trial phase, the overall recovery rate reached 87 per cent. The optical equipment is also configurable, which will allow the facility to be adapted to any future changes in the composition of the waste processed.
The new plant covers an area of 8,450 square metres and represents an investment of 15.78 million euros, of which 13 million comes from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, funded by NextGenerationEU.
The project forms part of a wider modernisation programme for the La Rioja Ecopark, located in Rad de Varea, Villamediana de Iregua. The complex has a total capacity to treat 130,000 tonnes of waste per year and a team currently comprising 118 professionals working across three shifts.
With the introduction of this new technology, the Ecopark is strengthening its ability to recover materials with greater precision, reduce waste and return more resources to the production cycle, thereby moving towards more efficient management of urban waste in La Rioja.