LyondellBasell Invests in German Plastics Recycling Plant

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--LyondellBasell Industries NV (LYB) (NYSE:LYB) (Rotterdam, Netherlands) has announced that it is going ahead with plans to build its first industrial-scale catalytic advanced recycling demonstration plant at its Wesseling site in Germany.

Using the company's MoReTec technology, the plant will be the first commercial-scale, single-train advanced recycling plant to convert hard-to-recycle post-consumer plastic waste into feedstock for new plastic materials. The plant, which will be partly powered by renewable energy, can be run at net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, LyondellBasell stated. It will have an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes per year and is designed to recycle the amount of plastic packaging waste generated by over 1.2 million German citizens per year. Construction is planned to be completed by the end of 2025.

"Scaling up our catalytic advanced recycling technology will allow us to return larger volumes of plastic waste back into the value chain," said Peter Vanacker, LYB chief executive officer. "By doing this, we will have the ability to produce more materials for high-quality applications, retaining the value of plastics for as long as possible. "We are committed to addressing the global challenge of plastic waste and advancing a circular economy, and today's announcement is another meaningful step in that direction."

The plant will tackle the issue of hard-to-recycle plastics, such as mixed or flexible materials that are currently sent to landfills or incineration facilities. The majority of the sorted processed feedstock will come from Source One Plastics (Germany), in which LYB is a joint owner. The MoReTec technology produces pyrolysis oil, which is a substitute for fossil-based materials used in polymer production, and pyrolysis gas--used to help fuel petrochemical crackers during polymer production.

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