Clean Bhutan to partner with Indian company to recycle plastic bottles into fabrics

YK Poudel

Imagine wearing a gho or kira crafted from plastic bottles—durable, comfortable, and entirely eco-friendly. This might soon become a reality.

Clean Bhutan, a civil society organisation dedicated to environmental conservation and waste management, will partner with India’s Shree Renga Polyester Private Limited, renowned for its EcoLine Clothing brand. This collaboration will bring the ‘bottle-to-garment’ concept to Bhutan, converting used PET bottles into garments.

The executive director of Clean Bhutan, Nedup Tshering, said that the project is based on a circular economy model. “This approach involves recycling PET bottles into fabrics that can be used to create traditional Bhutanese garments, such as the gho and kira among others.”

Founded in 2008 in Karur, Tamil Nadu, EcoLine Clothing is a trailblazer in the bottle-to-garment industry. The founder of Shree Renga Polyester Private Limited, R. Sankar, and Managing Director Senthil Sankar visited Bhutan at the invitation of Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay.

The company garnered international attention after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a public appearance recently wearing a EcoLine Clothing brand.

“Our company uses recycled PET bottles to manufacture sustainable clothing, which has garnered widespread acclaim,” Senthil Sankar said.

Currently, EcoLine processes 30 tonnes of plastic flakes into fibres daily. “By next year, the company will have double the capacity,” Senthil Sankar said.

EcoLine produces sustainable fabrics with a wide range of colours—over 200 shades—using dope-dye technology. This method colors the fabric during production, eliminating the need for water in dyeing processes.

“Generally, textile dyeing requires 2.4 trillion gallons of water every year but the dope-dye technology EcoLine uses does not require a single drop of water. Besides, the water used for cleansing the PET bottles is treated and reused,” Senthil Sankar explained.

Since its inception, the company has recycled 1,64,250 tonnes of PET bottles, sequestering 10,600 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

The partnership between Clean Bhutan and EcoLine is expected to unfold in two phases. Initially, Clean Bhutan will supply 20 tonnes of PET flakes per month to EcoLine, which will then convert these flakes into fabric for Bhutanese market. 

“These clothes will be used to produce gho and kira,” Senthil Sankar said. “It will also open new business opportunities for local women entrepreneurs.”

In the second phase, EcoLine will set up a plant in Bhutan.

Nedup Tshering expects the Memorandum of Understanding signing and processing of necessary approvals, including  license, to be completed within the next three months. “After that, business will be in full swing. We are ready to supply 20 tonnes of plastic flakes a month. In fact, the first truck load of plastic plakes will be sent within the next few weeks,” he said.

Clean Bhutan plans to collaborate with Greener Way, Bhutan Ecological Society, and various scrap dealers and waste handlers across the country to source PET bottles including interested individuals.

Clean Bhutan will purchase PET bottles at Nu 30 per kilogramme.

The project is also expected to balance carbon emissions through local production and contribute to Bhutan’s carbon trading market. “The carbon emissions produced during its transportation will be offset through production of raw materials for Bhutanese clothes and cost generated through its sale,” Nedup Tshering said.

With a team of 15, Clean Bhutan has already trained over 1,000 women in weaving plastic baskets and other materials at its Waste Academy in Changjiji, Thimphu.

Clean Bhutan has also received support from the Plastic Free Rivers and Seas for South Asia (PLEASE) project, which has provided a grant to help expand employment opportunities for local women tailors and handicrafters.

Advertisement