Month: December 2024

Latvia’s leading hazardous and environmentally harmful waste collection and recycling company, Ltd. (SIA) Eko Osta, which was fully acquired this year by JSC (AS) Eco Baltia, has been merged with Oil Recovery as of December 28 following a reorganization and will continue operations under its new name.

The acquisition of Eko Osta in October of this year was carried out through Eco Baltia group’s subsidiary Latvijas Zaļais punkts and its affiliated company, Oil Recovery. In December, a reorganization was completed, merging Eko Osta and Oil Recovery into a single entity that will continue operations under the “Oil Recovery” brand. The newly unified company will maintain its existing services in hazardous and environmentally harmful waste management. No changes are planned for the existing cooperation agreements and commitments with clients and partners.

Jānis Aizbalts, Head of the Environmental Sector at Eco Baltia Group, stated:
“Environmental sustainability is a continuously evolving process. We strive to offer a broader and more diversified portfolio of waste management and recycling services. Integrating a hazardous and harmful waste management company into the Eco Baltia group has allowed us to significantly expand our service offering, particularly in areas that have previously been challenging to address on a national scale.”

Oil Recovery (formerly Eko Osta) specializes in hazardous and environmentally harmful waste management and recycling, including the collection, transportation, treatment, and recycling of oil-contaminated wastewater, as well as environmental remediation and quality monitoring. The company also manages ship-generated waste in key Latvian ports, including Riga, Skulte, Salacgrīva, Engure, Lielupe, Mērsrags, and Roja, specifically focusing on the treatment of oil-related waste. Additionally, Oil Recovery collaborates with producer responsibility systems in Latvia, ensuring compliance with national regulations for the collection and recycling of hazardous and environmentally harmful waste.

Nauris Bertmanis, Chief Executive Officer of Oil Recovery, states: “Our goal is to establish this company as a stable and sustainable leader in the industry. The first steps include rebranding to align the company’s identity more closely with the international market – a key focus of our long-term strategy. Building on the services previously provided by Eko Osta, we plan to significantly expand our activities in the management of polluted water and the recycling of used oils under the Oil Recovery brand. To achieve these goals, we expect to invest approximately €1 million over the next year.”

About Oil Recovery (formerly Eko Osta)

Oil Recovery (formerly Eko Osta) is a leading hazardous and environmentally harmful waste management and recycling company. Originally established as Eko Osta in 1999, the company was reorganized and renamed Oil Recovery in 2024 following its acquisition by Eco Baltia. The company employs over 50 professionals, and its 2023 revenue reached €7.8 million.

Eco Baltia Group’s Lithuanian company Ecoservice’s total claim against Compensa reaches €13.6 million

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The Lithuanian environmental services company Ecoservice, part of the largest environmental resource management and recycling group in the Baltics, Eco Baltia, has clarified its civil claim against the Latvian branch of “Compensa Vienna Insurance Group” in court. Following the submission of additional calculations and evidence related to the damages of business interruption, the total amount of the claim reaches EUR 13.6 million.

As reported previously, the insurance claim relates to the losses suffered by Ecoservice when, on 5 August 2023, a fire at Ecoservice’s waste sorting centre caused widespread damage, destroying the building, the waste sorting equipment, part of the inventory and forcing a partial shutdown of its operations.

Despite the fact that the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Fire Protection and Rescue carried out investigations and established the essential circumstances of the fire, the insurer has failed to fulfill its obligations and has not paid insurance compensation in accordance with the terms of the insurance contract.

“We hope that Compensa will start fulfilling its contractual obligations and will compensate Ecoservice for the damages suffered by the company without delaying the process,” says Jurgita Nacevičienė, Manager of Ecoservice.

The claim was filed with the Riga City Court at the beginning of October of this year, and it contained calculations and evidence for a part of the insurance claim in the amount of EUR 7.4 million. Now, additional evidence and calculations related to the business interruption costs were added, bringing the total claim amount to EUR 13.6 million. The losses were calculated by international financial experts based on the company’s operational data and collected evidence. This was necessary as the insurance contract did not provide clear instructions for these calculations, and the insurer, during the damage administration process, not only refrained from offering any methodology for assessing the business interruption losses but also repeatedly rejected the calculations submitted by Ecoservice.

The document submitted to the court shows that the Latvian branch of Compensa is unreasonably delaying the decision on the insurance claim. Almost one and a half years after the accident, the insurance company has neither decided whether the accident should be declared insured nor whether to pay the full or partial indemnity.

After the fire, Ecoservice is rebuilding its capacity using its own and borrowed funds. It is estimated that the ongoing reconstruction of the sorting centre will require a total of EUR 18 million.

23.12.2024.

Eco Baltia intends to acquire up to 100%of JSC DAUGAVPILS SPECIALIZĒTAIS AUTOTRANSPORTA UZŅĒMUMS

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Eco Baltia, the largest environmental resource management and recycling group in the Baltics, has submitted a merger notification to the Competition Council of the Republic of Latvia (the “CC”) in order to obtain permission to acquire 56,2% of the shares of the Latvian road maintenance company JSC (AS) DAUGAVPILS SPECIALIZĒTAIS AUTOTRANSPORTA UZŅĒMUMS (“Daugavpils Spec. ATU”).   After the completion of the transaction, which is planned to be executed through Eco Baltia’s subsidiary, Eco Baltia vide, the group will hold 96.6% of the shares. However, group is interested to increase this stake up to 100%.

In Aprils of this year, Eco Baltia vide acquired 40.40% of the shares in Daugavpils Spec. ATU from the Daugavpils City Council and the Latvian State. The remaining shares are owned by private individuals.

Jānis Aizbalts, Chairman of the Management Board of Eco Baltia vide, commented:

“Considering our experience in road management gained over many years, we have experienced a breakthrough over last year and this year. Last year, we expanded Eco Baltia’s portfolio with the acquisition of Pilsētas Eko Serviss, a local road maintenance company in Riga which was added to Eco Baltia vide. This year we are further strengthening our presence in Daugavpils, Latvia’s second largest city. Our experience has resulted in an efficient and financially attractive assortment of services provided by the private sector.  It promotes healthy competition in the sector, improving service quality and introducing sustainable technological solutions.”

The same way as after the acquisition of the shares owned by the state and the local government, Daugavpils Spec. ATU will continue to provide its daily services as usual. No changes are planned to the existing cooperation agreements and arrangements for the customers, partners and employees of the parties involved in the transaction.

About JSC (AS) DAUGAVPILS SPECIALIZĒTAIS AUTOTRANANSPORTA UZŅĒMUMS

DAUGAVPILS SPECIALIZĒTAIS AUTOTRANANSPORTA UZŅĒMUMS was founded in January 1973. The company manages waste in municipalities in the Latgale region, provides street cleaning and maintenance services in Daugavpils and provides transport services. In 2023 “Daugavpils Spec. ATU” had an audited turnover of EUR 5,5 million. The company had 98 employees.

About LTD (SIA) Eco Baltia vide:

Eco Baltia vide is an environmental management company providing a wide range of environmental management services – municipal and sorted waste collection, packaging waste management, construction and bulky waste management, area cleaning and road management, as well as various seasonal services. In 2023, Eco Baltia vide closed the year with an unaudited turnover of almost EUR 54 million.