MBA Polymers President and founder receives the illustrious Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development

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1 1 Press Release 21 June 2012 MBA Polymers President and founder receives the illustrious Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development The 2012 Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development has been won this year by Dr Mike Biddle, President and Founder of MBA Polymers, the world leading multinational plastics recycling company. The announcement was made in advance of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development being held in Rio de Janeiro this week. It will also be announced at the start of Plasticity 2012 which is taking place today on the second day of the summit and will focus on the sustainable use of plastics. (The text of the press release is below). The award winner in 2011 was former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan. Amongst previous winners were Al Gore (2007) and the former Prime Minister of Norway and Director General of the World Health Organization, Gro Harlem Brundtland (2002). The award this year has been made jointly to Dr Biddle and Bjorn Söderberg the founder of the Fair Enterprise Network, which develops responsible companies in Nepal in the area of sustainable waste recycling. Mike Biddle commented, I was absolutely flabbergasted when they told me. It s a terrific honour to be selected by such a renowned international jury and even to be on the same list of people such as Kofi Annan and Al Gore is a really humbling experience. MBA Polymers Chief Executive Nigel Hunton commented, This is a remarkable achievement and a great honour for both Mike and MBA Polymers. Over nearly 20 years we ve now grown to become the world s leading multinational company recovering plastics

2 2 from end-of-life durable goods, such as computers, electronics, business equipment, appliances and automobiles. With 300 million pounds a year processing capacity across the world in the US, Europe and China, turning waste into recycled plastics, we are now really starting to make a difference in this important environmental and economic area. Steve Russell, vice president of plastics for the American Chemistry Council added, Mike Biddle s pursuit of excellence and innovation has been remarkable, and we congratulate him on this well-deserved award. Biddle s work has helped to demonstrate that even after use, plastics are a valuable resource too valuable to waste and can be recycled into another generation of useful, innovative products. Ends Notes to Editors MBA Polymers MBA Polymers is the world leader at producing post-consumer recycled plastics from end-oflife durable goods. MBA produces pure, consistent, and reliably available materials which provide customers both cost advantage and price stability. MBA sources 100% postconsumer feedstock diverted from landfill or incineration and saves over 80% of the energy and 1-3 tons of CO₂ for each ton of virgin plastics replaced. Dr Mike Biddle Mike Biddle is President and Founder of MBA Polymers. Dr. Biddle and MBA have already received numerous international awards. Among them, MBA was named one of the top 100 cleantech companies in the world in both 2009 and 2010 and one of the top five cleantech companies in Europe in In 2010 Dr. Biddle won The Economist s Innovation Award for Energy and the Environment and was named a World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer in Dr. Biddle also won the first Thomas Alva Edison Award for Innovation and the first Ascent Award for Entrepreneurship. Mike was a panel member for the World Green Summit in Rio this week. Other panelists included Sir Richard Branson, Ted Turner and Helle Thorning-Schmidt, Prime Minister of Denmark as well as executives from PepsiCo, BMW, Philips, MASDAR, ENI, Accenture and the World Bank. For further information please contact: Nigel Hunton, Chief Executive MBA Polymers: nhunton@mbapolymers.com,

3 3 Press release Winners selected for the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development 2012 The winners of the Gothenburg award for Sustainable Development will share SEK How do we achieve a sustainable society? That is the question that people spontaneously ask themselves when discussing recycling issues and sustainable development. That was the starting point when the jury of the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development nominated the 2012 Laureate. In comparison with nature s eco-cycle in which waste products are of value in new processes, society s current use of materials is unsustainable! As an example, only 5 per cent of plastics in the world are recycled. Entrepreneurship and new innovative solutions are required to break this trend and instead create functioning ecocycles. Against this background, awarded this year the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development between two persons, one American and one Swedish, which in different ways successfully working to close the loops. The prize is worth a million Swedish Kronor and is divided equally between: Dr. Michael Biddle, Richmond, USA, combining technical expertise and entrepreneurial brilliance in his work that includes recycled plastics. Björn Söderberg, Stockholm and Nepal, which builds and develops responsible companies in Nepal in the field of sustainable waste recycling Jury chairman John Holmberg commented on 2012 winners: - Nature is characterized by ingenious closed systems, where waste products are new inputs. In comparison, industrial society linear material flows infernal ineffective - they lead to resource depletion, waste problems and energy waste. That, as the year's two winners done, find thoughtful solutions to end the cycles are necessary and possible. Gothenburg Prize was founded in 1999 by the City along with several companies with the aim to "stimulate the continued development and recognize strategic work of sustainable development, nationally and internationally." The prize is awarded in collaboration between the City of Gothenburg, Västra Götaland and 13 the following companies: Andra AP-Fonden, Carl Bennet AB, Christan Berner Invest AB, Elanders AB, Eldan Recycling, Folksam, Handelsbanken, Kooperativa Förbundet, Nordea, PEAB, SEB, DB Schenker AB and SKF.

4 4 This year's prize is the thirteenth in order and will be awarded at a ceremony in Gothenburg on December winner - a presentation: Dr Michael Biddle started MBA Polymers in his garage in 1992, shortly after completing his chemistry doctorate. He wanted to prove that plastics from complex waste streams can be recycled into high-quality raw material. He developed techniques for separating and refining plastic waste to produce attractive quality-assured raw materials that replace new oil-based plastics. The business has since grown from concept into large-scale industrial production in the USA, Europe and China. Dr Biddle is awarded the prize for combining deep technical expertise and entrepreneurial brilliance with a drive to close the loop. His solutions contribute to reducing waste and saving the Earth s non-renewable resources. Dr Biddle inspires other entrepreneurs to develop innovative hi-tech solutions in the waste sector. Björn Söderberg, founder of the Fair Enterprise Network, builds up and develops responsible companies in Nepal in the area of sustainable waste recycling. At just 19, Björn Söderberg went to Nepal as a volunteer, where he encountered both poverty and a river full of refuse. Where many others see problems, Björn Söderberg sees opportunities and potential. The refuse was a resource when starting his first company, Watabaran, which manufactures paper from waste, as well as in his latest company, Shubha Briquettes Pvt Ltd, which manufactures briquettes from industrial and factory waste. The companies combine profitable business activity with the basic values of ethics, democracy and eco-awareness, contributing in this way to sustainable development. Björn Söderberg is awarded the prize for both creating jobs and contributing to an increased eco-cycle approach through his entrepreneurship. He inspires others to see the potential of eco-aware entrepreneurship for solving social problems. Jury: Chaired by: John Holmberg, Professor and Vice President at Chalmers University in Gothenburg. Other jury members: Göran Carstedt, president of The Natural Step and previously held senior positions in Ikea and Volvo. Elin Eriksson, Chief of the Swedish Environmental Research Institute of unit products, processes and organizations for sustainable development. Lotta Goethe, CEO of the company Ecoplan. Johanna Stahl, editor of the Camino, a magazine for sustainable living. Johan Trouvé, president of the West Swedish Chamber of Commerce. Annika Ahnberg, former MP and former agriculture minister.

5 5 Previous recipients: 2011: Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and the Tigray Project, an initially local initiative aimed at small farmers in northern Ethiopia. They have both contributed in different ways to the work in Africa to allow sustainable farming to become the engine of social progress. 2010: Ken Sherman, USA, and Randall Arauz, Costa Rica. To both, in different ways, contributed strongly to solutions for a sustainable relationship with the sea. 2009: Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka, Kenya, Enrique Peñalosa, Colombia, Soren Hermansen, Denmark. They have contributed to solutions to create more sustainable cities and regions, environmental and social. 2008: Theo Colborn, USA, Margot Wallstrom, European, Jan Ahlbom/ Ulf Duus, Sweden. 2007: Al Gore, the United States. His efforts to raise awareness about global warming and thereby creating the conditions to stop the climate crisis. 2006: Takeshi Uschiyamada, Takehisa Yaegashi and Yuichi Fujii, Japan. For their outstanding, purposeful and critical contributions to the development of Toyota Prius, the world's first commercial hybrid. 2005: Abahuzamugambi a coffee cooperative, Rwanda. For the work to produce coffee in a socially, ecologically and economically sustainable and thereby create conditions for positive development in one of the poorest districts in Rwanda. 2004: Joan Bavaria, the U.S. and Tessa Tennant, UK. For his work in "sustainable investment", which is aimed and ethical funds has inspired companies to financial, social and environmental responsibility. 2003: Hans Eek, Sweden and Wolfgang Feist, Germany. For the technology to build warm homes without integrated heating systems, so-called "passive". People and sunny is enough for a comfortable indoor climate, leading to decreased carbon dioxide emissions. 2002: Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norway. For his visionary and innovative environmental efforts and the launch of the concept of "sustainable development". 2001: FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) and KRAV. For their work with environmental certification and eco-labeling of forest and products. 2000: Geoffrey Ballard, Canada For their commitment and their efforts to ensure the continued development of fuel cells. For more information: John Holmberg, chairman of the jury, phone Anders Johansson, media department Göteborg & Co, phone