The facility, which has been supported by a £1.7m Single Investment Fund grant from the Welsh Assembly Government, will sort dry recyclables such as plastic bottles, cardboard, newspapers, magazines and metals.

The unit will employ 160 people in addition to the 405 staff working for the UPM Shotton site, which produces 100% recycled fibre newsprint. It has the capacity to sort 270,000 of mixed material and has been designed to achieve 99% recovery rates, the highest in the UK.

Around 120,000 tonnes of high quality paper will be recovered annually for paper making at the site.

Speaking at the opening event, Jussi Pesonen, president and chief executive of UPM, said that the company was working hard to maximise reuse and minimise waste.

He added: "The materials recovery facility clearly demonstrates how integrated manufacturing can work."

UPM is the largest manufacturer of 100% recycled newsprint in the UK and annually recovers around 640,000 tonnes of newspapers and magazines.