Wyre Waste first to lease recycling plant through WRAP scheme

A Lancashire waste-management company has become the first in the country to lease recycling equipment using the unique eQuip Residual Value Guarantee (RVG) scheme set up by WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme).

Wyre Waste Management, based in Fleetwood, have secured a five-year operating lease with Bank of Scotland Asset Finance for aggregate crushing and screening equipment worth £220,000.

‘The opportunity to lease this equipment came at the right time for us and really helped financially,’ said Ian Drury, a partner in Wyre Waste Management. ‘If the eQuip scheme had not been available, we would have had very limited financial alternatives.

‘Grants were not available and buying was not an option as we could not afford a big initial outlay of capital. Hire purchase wouldn’t have helped us either, as we would have needed a large deposit which we could not afford.’

Commenting on the scheme, WRAP’s investment manager , Tara Clair, said: ‘We have seen a great deal of interest in the scheme since its launch earlier this year. Historically, it has been very difficult to lease equipment in the recycling sector as banks and other lenders are often reluctant to look at technologies they are not familiar with. The eQuip scheme makes it a lot easier.’

Under eQuip, WRAP has set up a panel of lessors. When WRAP introduces applicants to them, a residual value for the asset in question is agreed so that competitive repayments can be calculated. Should the machinery depreciate more than expected, WRAP undertake to make good any shortfall.

According to Bank of Scotland’s Paul Dear, it was the traditional benefits of an operating lease that helped secure the deal with Wyre Waste Management. ‘Easier long-term financial planning and access to the right equipment without a massive initial outlay are incredibly valuable options for any business and it is great to be offering these benefits to the recycling sector,’ he said.