RECYCLING INCLUDES PROVIDING THEM AS FUEL FOR CEMENT PLANTS
Story by Larissa Kurz •
Director of Operations Nick Panske gives a tour of Shercom Industries' tire-processing facility. Photo taken in Saskatoon, Sask. on Tuesday, May 9, 2023.© Michelle Berg
Shercom’s CEO says the company wasn’t looking for a sweetheart deal, but for transparency from the provincial stewardship program they say cut them out without explanation.
“It’s the transparency, the secretiveness of what happened and why it happened the way it did,” Mike Richards lamented in an interview Monday.
The Saskatoon-based tire processor shut down its recycling arm in April 2023 after Tire Stewardship Saskatchewan (TSS) awarded a contract to U.S. company Crumb Rubber Manufacturing (CRM) in 2022 to open a southern facility in Moose Jaw.
Richards said that in 2021, TSS executives indicated a request for proposals (RFP) issued at the time was “for information gathering purposes only,” as the two entities renegotiated a contract that expired the year prior. But Shercom was surprised when the RFP appeared to seek a second operator who could “minimize overlap” with existing services.
“They were trying to negotiate with us on one hand and courting another company on the other hand,” he said. “I would be concerned as to why, as an organization that is an arm of the government, they’re acting in such a way.”
The wording of the RFP, awarded to CRM the following year, excluded Shercom from bidding, according to the company’s legal counsel, which says an RFP for a new northern operator issued in 2023 puts the company in the same spot as two years ago.
The addition of a southern operator split the market in half, a move Richards said was an “unneeded” intervention in the free market, and a move industry experts also disagreed with.
Historically, Saskatchewan has not had enough volume to support two recycling processors successfully, with nine other companies folding since 1998. Richards said TSS still has not provided a report the organization previously contracted that purportedly shows the need for additional operations in the province and was the impetus for the 2021 RFP.
The report was fully redacted by the Ministry of Environment when delivered through a freedom of information request to TSS.
Related
NDP says tire recycling contract with U.S. company cost Saskatchewan at least 60 jobs
TSS CEO Stevyn Arnt declined an interview with the Leader-Post, but did respond to a list of emailed questions on behalf of the organization.
On the decision to add a second facility, he said the intention was to bring in “new technologies” to boost value-added processing and cut the environmental impact of driving tires across the province to be processed.
“We believe that with the decrease in logistics costs, we would be able to direct these funds to help clean up the number of legacy tire piles that exist on farms and in communities,” he wrote.
The program recycled more than 25,000 metric tonnes, or 25 million kilograms, of scrap tires in 2022 compared to an annual average of 21,000 to 23,000 metric tonnes.
“We achieved a recovery rate of 79 per cent, which indicates that we are recycling 4 out of every 5 tires sold in the province,” said Arnt, adding 2024 is on track to hit 97 per cent.
Richards says Shercom could have handled that capacity and that this wasn’t an issue in contract negotiations.
His industry contacts have since told him CRM ships its raw material out of province to Calgary, while Shercom buys the same resources from Alberta, Ontario and B.C. to continue manufacturing its front-end products.
Between when Shercom idled its plant in May 2023 and CRM’s facility in Moose Jaw opened in July, Arnt also confirmed a “Limited number of scrap tires” were exported out-of-province for processing. Short-term storage piles were also used.
Since then, all tires have been processed in-province, according to the ministry.
“We were keeping everything in Saskatchewan,” Richards said, adding “the environmental impact alone” of this new reality undercuts TSS’s arguments for cutting freight emissions.
The larger issue is a murky RFP process and “the redacted documents that came back out of it,” said Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck on Monday. “And, again, a minister unwilling to answer questions and then pointing fingers elsewhere.”
Opposition Leader Carla Beck on Monday, April 22, 2024 in Regina.
Story by Larissa Kurz •
Director of Operations Nick Panske gives a tour of Shercom Industries' tire-processing facility. Photo taken in Saskatoon, Sask. on Tuesday, May 9, 2023.© Michelle Berg
Shercom’s CEO says the company wasn’t looking for a sweetheart deal, but for transparency from the provincial stewardship program they say cut them out without explanation.
“It’s the transparency, the secretiveness of what happened and why it happened the way it did,” Mike Richards lamented in an interview Monday.
The Saskatoon-based tire processor shut down its recycling arm in April 2023 after Tire Stewardship Saskatchewan (TSS) awarded a contract to U.S. company Crumb Rubber Manufacturing (CRM) in 2022 to open a southern facility in Moose Jaw.
Richards said that in 2021, TSS executives indicated a request for proposals (RFP) issued at the time was “for information gathering purposes only,” as the two entities renegotiated a contract that expired the year prior. But Shercom was surprised when the RFP appeared to seek a second operator who could “minimize overlap” with existing services.
“They were trying to negotiate with us on one hand and courting another company on the other hand,” he said. “I would be concerned as to why, as an organization that is an arm of the government, they’re acting in such a way.”
The wording of the RFP, awarded to CRM the following year, excluded Shercom from bidding, according to the company’s legal counsel, which says an RFP for a new northern operator issued in 2023 puts the company in the same spot as two years ago.
Related video: Sask. residents will get carbon tax rebates despite province withholding funds (cbc.ca) Duration 2:01 View on Watch
The addition of a southern operator split the market in half, a move Richards said was an “unneeded” intervention in the free market, and a move industry experts also disagreed with.
Historically, Saskatchewan has not had enough volume to support two recycling processors successfully, with nine other companies folding since 1998. Richards said TSS still has not provided a report the organization previously contracted that purportedly shows the need for additional operations in the province and was the impetus for the 2021 RFP.
The report was fully redacted by the Ministry of Environment when delivered through a freedom of information request to TSS.
Related
NDP says tire recycling contract with U.S. company cost Saskatchewan at least 60 jobs
TSS CEO Stevyn Arnt declined an interview with the Leader-Post, but did respond to a list of emailed questions on behalf of the organization.
On the decision to add a second facility, he said the intention was to bring in “new technologies” to boost value-added processing and cut the environmental impact of driving tires across the province to be processed.
“We believe that with the decrease in logistics costs, we would be able to direct these funds to help clean up the number of legacy tire piles that exist on farms and in communities,” he wrote.
The program recycled more than 25,000 metric tonnes, or 25 million kilograms, of scrap tires in 2022 compared to an annual average of 21,000 to 23,000 metric tonnes.
“We achieved a recovery rate of 79 per cent, which indicates that we are recycling 4 out of every 5 tires sold in the province,” said Arnt, adding 2024 is on track to hit 97 per cent.
Richards says Shercom could have handled that capacity and that this wasn’t an issue in contract negotiations.
His industry contacts have since told him CRM ships its raw material out of province to Calgary, while Shercom buys the same resources from Alberta, Ontario and B.C. to continue manufacturing its front-end products.
Between when Shercom idled its plant in May 2023 and CRM’s facility in Moose Jaw opened in July, Arnt also confirmed a “Limited number of scrap tires” were exported out-of-province for processing. Short-term storage piles were also used.
Since then, all tires have been processed in-province, according to the ministry.
“We were keeping everything in Saskatchewan,” Richards said, adding “the environmental impact alone” of this new reality undercuts TSS’s arguments for cutting freight emissions.
The larger issue is a murky RFP process and “the redacted documents that came back out of it,” said Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck on Monday. “And, again, a minister unwilling to answer questions and then pointing fingers elsewhere.”
Opposition Leader Carla Beck on Monday, April 22, 2024 in Regina.
© Provided by Leader Post
An NDP government would adhere to a Saskatchewan-first procurement policy if elected, to “prioritize maximum value” of public contracts, she said.
“I’m not here to fight for jobs in Alberta, or in Ontario, or the U.S. I want to see our companies and our workers here at home thrive and grow,” Beck added. “People need to have confidence in the process.”
Responding to comments made by Beck and Opposition critic for ethics and democracy Meara Conway in question period last week, Prairie Sky Strategy denied any insinuation that former Sask. Party minister turned lobbyist Kevin Doherty was involved with CRM when the 2022 contract was inked.
“Mr. Doherty had no knowledge or involvement with the process for establishing a southern tire processing RFP or the awarding of that contract,” said Doherty’s employer, CEO Jeff Sterzuk, in a statement Friday.
Sterzuk confirmed Doherty registered with the Saskatchewan Lobbyist Registry as a “consultant lobbyist” on Nov. 25, which was within 10 days of his entering into an “engagement” with CRM, as is required by law.
He said it is for “in-house” lobbyists that the 30-hour rule, which allows an individual to engage in up to 30 hours of lobbying before being required to register, applies. Last week, Conway pointed out the rule during critiques of the government’s handling of the recycling contracts, calling it a “loophole.”
“It would have been illegal for Mr. Doherty to engage in any lobbying or advocacy under the 30-hour rule that has been cited,” he wrote, continuing the firm “would not tolerate” that from an employee.
— with files from the Saskatoon StarPhoenix
lkurz@postmedia.com
An NDP government would adhere to a Saskatchewan-first procurement policy if elected, to “prioritize maximum value” of public contracts, she said.
“I’m not here to fight for jobs in Alberta, or in Ontario, or the U.S. I want to see our companies and our workers here at home thrive and grow,” Beck added. “People need to have confidence in the process.”
Responding to comments made by Beck and Opposition critic for ethics and democracy Meara Conway in question period last week, Prairie Sky Strategy denied any insinuation that former Sask. Party minister turned lobbyist Kevin Doherty was involved with CRM when the 2022 contract was inked.
“Mr. Doherty had no knowledge or involvement with the process for establishing a southern tire processing RFP or the awarding of that contract,” said Doherty’s employer, CEO Jeff Sterzuk, in a statement Friday.
Sterzuk confirmed Doherty registered with the Saskatchewan Lobbyist Registry as a “consultant lobbyist” on Nov. 25, which was within 10 days of his entering into an “engagement” with CRM, as is required by law.
He said it is for “in-house” lobbyists that the 30-hour rule, which allows an individual to engage in up to 30 hours of lobbying before being required to register, applies. Last week, Conway pointed out the rule during critiques of the government’s handling of the recycling contracts, calling it a “loophole.”
“It would have been illegal for Mr. Doherty to engage in any lobbying or advocacy under the 30-hour rule that has been cited,” he wrote, continuing the firm “would not tolerate” that from an employee.
— with files from the Saskatoon StarPhoenix
lkurz@postmedia.com
No comments:
Post a Comment