Johann Wadephul helped evacuate German tourists stranded in the Gulf during a crisis visit to Qatar, transporting them by military aircraft to Riyadh on Wednesday.
Six adults and four children, three families travelling together joined Wadephul aboard an Airbus A400M Atlas operated by the German Air Force for the flight from Doha to the Saudi capital.
A member of the Bundeswehr who had been in the region on official duties was also on board.
From Riyadh, the German tourists are expected to return to Germany on Thursday on a special flight arranged by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany.
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The evacuation comes amid ongoing regional tensions linked to the war involving Iran, which has been underway for about a week and a half.
Wadephul said the Foreign Office could not give an exact figure for how many Germans remain stranded in the region.
He noted that authorities do not know how many citizens listed on the ministry’s Elefand crisis preparedness list have already returned home.
However, the minister said the situation had improved as commercial flight operations in the region have increased again in recent days.
According to the Foreign Office, several thousand German nationals have already been able to leave Qatar.
Earlier this week, more than 180 people were flown to Berlin on a special flight from Riyadh, after buses had transported them from Doha.
Another evacuation flight was scheduled for Thursday.
Indorama Ventures Public Company Ltd., Nigerian Breweries Plc and Genesis Power and Energy Solutions Ltd. have partnered to establish one of Africa’s largest recycled polyethylene terephthalates production facilities in Nigeria.
Mr Yash Lohia, Chairman of the Environmental, Social and Governance Council at Indorama Ventures, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
Lohia said the collaboration marked a major step toward strengthening circular economy infrastructure and sustainable packaging value chains in the region.
According to him, the facility, to be in Lagos, will have the capacity to produce up to 45,000 tonnes of food-grade rPET resin annually, with start-up targeted for the first half of 2027.
He also said the initiative aligned with Nigeria’s National Policy on Plastic Waste Management introduced in 2020, which aimed to ensure that all plastic packaging becomes recyclable, biodegradable, compostable or reusable by 2030.
” Lagos, as Nigeria’s commercial hub, provides a strategic base to develop recycling infrastructure capable of serving both national and regional demand.
” By converting post-consumer PET bottles into high-quality recycled materials for packaging applications, the initiative aims to meet rising demand for recycled content, reduce plastic waste and create local value through improved collection systems and job creation,” Lohia said.
He noted that the partnership combined complementary strengths across the PET value chain.
Lohia further said that Indorama Ventures, the world’s largest recycler of PET for beverages, would provide expertise in sustainable materials development.
He added that Nigerian Breweries would contribute local market insight and engagement within Nigeria’s beverage ecosystem, while Genesis Energy would support the project with sustainable infrastructure and energy solutions.
According to him, the project is expected to strengthen recycling capacity in Nigeria, subject to regulatory approvals, technical validation and operational implementation.
” This partnership marks a defining milestone in our global recycling journey.
” By establishing our largest recycling facility to date and one of the largest rPET sites in Africa, we are bringing Indorama Ventures’ global expertise, proven technologies and long-term vision for circularity to a region with immense growth potential.”
Lohia noted that the investment underscored the company’s commitment to circular infrastructure, advanced recycling technology and partnerships that strengthened collection, education and innovation across the value chain.
He added that Indorama Ventures currently operated 20 recycling facilities across 11 countries and had recycled more than 160 billion post-consumer PET bottles into high-quality recycled materials.
According to him, the Nigeria project represents the company’s first recycling investment in Africa and its largest recycling plant globally.
Speaking on the partnership, Chairman, Genesis Energy, Mr Akinwole II Omoboriowo, said the initiative demonstrated the company’s commitment to climate-resilient investments.
Omoboriowo said the project also showed how cross-sector collaboration could enable sustainable industrial development.
” By combining circular economy principles with resilient infrastructure and energy solutions, the initiative supports long-term environmental impact and local value creation,” he said.
He added that beyond industrial investment, the project would contribute to environmental and socio-economic objectives through increased PET collection, diversion of plastic waste from landfills and engagement with local communities on best practices in waste collection and recycling.
According to the partners, the signing of the agreement represents the first milestone in a broader development roadmap aimed at supporting sustainable packaging solutions and advancing Nigeria’s transition to a circular and resource-efficient economy.
NAN
