Elixir focuses on modern recycling management, expanded product portfolio and service at Prahovo Chemical Park

With 1,650 employees and an annual turnover of €320 million, the Serbian Elixir Group is one of the leading producers of mineral fertilizers and phosphoric acid in Eastern Europe. The Group's chemical site in Prahovo in eastern Serbia, which has been established since the 1960s, has been developed into the Prahovo Industrial and Chemical Park (ICPP) in recent years based on the German model.

The site, located on the Danube, is owned by the Elixir Group and is also operated by the Serbian group of companies. The ICPP has been continuously expanded and offers companies and partners settlement opportunities based on state-of-the-art infrastructure for a wide range of business models. "There is a great deal of interest in our individual service offerings. In particular, the ideal geographical location, its own port, rail connection, connection to a hydroelectric power plant in the immediate vicinity and a wide range of on-site services make the park so attractive for companies," reports Matthias Predojevic, Vice President Corporate Development at Elixir. The ICPP is responsible for all cross-site functions such as energy and media supply, security, waste water and waste disposal as well as logistics. This bundling allows companies to save costs and concentrate on production.

"With this constellation, the industrial and chemical park offers a wide range of opportunities for the chemical industry throughout Europe. Our efforts to integrate sustainability into all processes are also seen as essential by companies." Whether it is energy-saving technology, environmentally friendly disposal options or the conservation of resources, Elixir has solutions for current requirements, says Predojevic, who points out the importance of a sustainable circular economy. "The entire industry has a common goal: to produce in the most environmentally friendly way possible. We have created the ideal framework for this endeavor."

Environmentally friendly disposal and reuse 

Elixir's new service also fits perfectly into the programme: the group produces mineral NPK fertilizers in Sabac and Prahovo and is able to use waste acids and their mixtures, such as pickling solutions, without additional pre-treatment. "We have expanded our product portfolio and have been able to accept waste sulphur-phosphoric acid mixtures - from the automotive industry, for example - for some time now. These acids are used directly in our fertilizer production and can therefore be put to further use." And the interest is great. "We are very pleased with the initial consistently positive feedback from companies that are happy to take advantage of such an offer," says Predojevic. According to Kristian Vorkapić, Sales Director Chemicals at Elixir, several European metal processors are already supplying the precipitated acids.

Thanks to the cooperation with Elixir, companies that use phosphoric acid can do justice to their own efforts to bring the corresponding waste products back into the circular economy according to the principle of 'recovery instead of disposal'. In this respect, Predojevic speaks of a further contribution by the Serbian group of companies to greater environmental protection and resource conservation: "We want to continue to develop in this area and at the same time promote European cooperation".