From scrap metal as a key raw material for decarbonizing the steel industry, to AI-supported sorting processes, to chemical recycling of virgin material quality – experts from industry, science, law, and politics presented promising approaches for the circular economy at the Zukunft.Ressourcen 2025 conference in Mauthausen. The event was hosted by the Cleantech and Plastics Clusters of the Upper Austrian business development agency, Business Upper Austria.

Raw materials are becoming increasingly scarce; they are finite. "To remain competitive in Europe, we must use them carefully, unlock new potential, and become less dependent on global supply chains. Only this will create resilience for Upper Austria as a business location and ultimately for Europe," emphasized Dorian Wessely, Cleantech Cluster Manager, at the start of the Future.Resources event.

Scrap metal as a climate hero

Christoph Priemetshofer of voestalpine Rohstoffbeschaffungs GmbH illustrated that scrap metal has become a crucial lever for decarbonizing the steel industry: „Twenty years ago, scrap metal was considered dirty, smelly waste. Today, we've gone from zero to hero.‚ Already, 25 percent of voestalpine's products contain scrap metal. This percentage will increase with the electric arc furnaces currently under construction. Since the demand for and volume of scrap metal will rise significantly in the coming years, voestalpine is working on, among other things, return concepts for customer scrap.

AI against resource loss

Alexia Tischberger-Aldrian from the Chair of Waste Processing Technology and Waste Management at the University of Leoben also deals with scrap metal, albeit in a different form. "Bulky waste, as well as old electrical appliances and end-of-life vehicles, are usually considered scrap," Tischberger-Aldrian explained. But: "These are urban mines with enormous recycling potential." The challenge lies in the fact that the metals they contain are usually not sorted by type, and the waste is therefore shredded in large-scale shredding plants. Due to the high copper content, the resulting fractions are then unusable domestically and are exported. "This is an immense outflow of raw materials that we cannot accept," said Tischberger-Aldrian. In the "KIRAMET" project, she is working with partners to improve the quality of metal waste using AI.

Recycled material of virgin material quality

Maximilian Wende from the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV demonstrated the progress of research in the chemical recycling of plastics. "Our solvent-based process enables high-quality recycling of composites and mixed sorting fractions," Wende reported. The solvents used are safe and applicable to all thermoplastics. The resulting recyclate is free of foreign polymers, impurities, and harmful substances. The research team has succeeded in integrating multilayer packaging and films into the recycling loop. The IVV has also produced high-purity PE recyclates that can be used without hesitation in direct food contact. The process was equally successful with shredder waste, battery casings, and textiles, as well as with PVC and EPS construction waste. "Our recyclates achieve virgin material quality," Wende concluded.

Laws are lagging behind

The majority of speakers emphasized the importance of clear legal frameworks for integrating material flows into a closed-loop system and making this economically viable. Marie Sophie Reitinger of DORDA Rechtsanwälte GmbH commented that while laws always lag behind innovations, legislators are striving to adapt them. "As a legislator, you have to keep the big picture in mind. That's not always easy, but I think we're on the right track," the lawyer said.

PPWR is coming – but is the economy ready?

Dieter Schuch of Altstoff Recycling Austria AG (ARA) addressed the question of whether the upcoming European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) represents an opportunity or a risk for the economy. "Unfortunately, many questions remain unanswered," Schuch explained. The PPWR is scheduled to come into effect on August 12, 2026, but many of the details are not expected until two years later. "The lead times for companies are far too short due to the lack of clear criteria, which is why there is already talk of postponing the PPWR until 2027," Schuch emphasized.

Digital product passport for packaging transparency

Klaus Fellner, Team Leader for Circular Economy at ENGEL Austria GmbH, explained how ENGEL is preparing for the requirements of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Ordinance and the Digital Product Passport. The company is part of the "R-Cycle" initiative, which includes a wide range of stakeholders along the value chain. At its core is a digital product passport that enables seamless traceability of plastic products throughout their entire life cycle. For standardized information exchange across company boundaries – for example, regarding material composition or proof of origin – "R-Cycle" uses the open and globally standardized GS1 standards. "The question will inevitably arise as to which materials are in a package. We are prepared for this and can thus provide an important building block for the circularity of plastic packaging," Fellner asserted.

Recycling up close

At the TriPlast sorting plant in the Enns port, participants experienced the circular economy firsthand. Europe's most modern and Austria's largest sorting plant for lightweight packaging already utilizes artificial intelligence, primarily employing near-infrared technology. The next step involves further automating the sorting of the yellow recycling bags. At the Bernegger Raw Materials Park in Enns, Technische Behandlungsysteme GmbH demonstrated how valuable raw materials are recovered from complex material flows using a globally unique thermal metal recovery process. This process enables the recycling of 99 percent of the raw materials from end-of-life vehicles, electrical, and electronic waste.

Innovations happen through collaboration

Following the motto "Waste is food," participants in the accompanying workshop gathered ideas for recyclable resources from their own companies and developed circular business models based on these ideas. Three ambitious projects emerged from this: the establishment of an interest cluster for the underestimated material magnesium, an AI-supported matchmaking platform for secondary materials, and the utilization and storage of waste heat in the form of composites. "The workshop once again demonstrated that innovation happens through collaboration," concluded plastics cluster manager Wolfgang Bohmayr.

„"I need visions"“

Ingo Hegny from the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI) highlighted the strategic approach of a visionary research, technology, and innovation policy and presented how the ministry's strategy focuses on transformation, the circular economy, and resource utilization. "R&D has an effect, but not immediately. I need grand visions, long-term planning, and agile pursuit of these plans with concrete implementation steps. This can take several generations," said Hegny.

Road trip to sustainability

Melanie Eggel and Annalena Reisinger from Business Upper Austria took the audience on a road trip. The first technology roadmap, "Sustainable Plastics Solutions," from 2021, was extensively evaluated and updated – and expanded to include "food processes." Legal developments at the EU and national levels were just as much a driving force as the societal expectation for future generations to use resources more sustainably and consciously. "To realize the vision of a model region by 2030, we need a close collaboration between stakeholders, research institutions, and industry. We must think strategically and consider the topic holistically, beyond the confines of individual industries and sectors, and with the potential of new technologies," Reisinger emphasized.

Shaping the future and thinking ahead

The Future.Resources event series is part of a twelve-month series exploring transformation in various industries. It kicked off with the Future Forum on April 8, 2025, followed by Future.HR in September and Future.Digitalization in October. Next on the agenda is Future.Production on February 4, 2026, focusing on "Intelligent and efficient: Robotics and Automation.".