Utility and toll roads operator NTR is buying a US recycling business for around €40 million.

The group announced at its annual general meeting in Dublin yesterday that its US waste management subsidiary, Greenstar North America (GSNA), is buying Allentown, Pennsylvania-based recycler Todd Heller Inc.

Following the meeting, chief executive Jim Barry said the cost of the deal was "north of $50 million" (€36.5 million), which would bring the purchase price close to €40 million.

Mr Barry explained that NTR was building up its waste management business in the US by focusing on developing its presence in specific regions.

Todd Heller will give it a base close to the eastern seaboard in Pennsylvania, where it is already operating, and New Jersey.

Mr Barry made it clear that NTR was continuing to look for other potential targets in waste management in the US.

The company recently established Greenstar North America with the intention of building up its presence in that market. It is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Greenstar North America chief executive Steve Ragiel said Todd Heller would help the company open up new markets for recycled materials.

Mr Barry said the company believed that the value of recycled goods themselves would continue to increase as the squeeze on such resources as oil gets tighter.

NTR's interests span toll roads, waste management, wind-generated electricity - through its shareholding in Airtricity - and telecoms, through its ownership of Irish Broadband.