LYB lays foundation for 1st industrial-scale advanced recycling plant at Wesseling, Germany, site
Catalytic pyrolysis unit in heart of Europe to bolster sustainable growth, value creation
- Chancellor Scholz, top elected officials attend milestone event; celebrate company commitment to Cologne region
- Proprietary LYB MoReTec technology enables scalable solution to recapture valuable raw materials from hard-to-recycle plastics often destined to landfill, incineration
- Unit's design and process technology enable high plastic-to-plastic yield; allow for operation under 100% renewable power, helping reduce GHG emissions
WESSELING, Germany, Sept. 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LyondellBasell (NYSE:LYB) today advanced its journey toward sustainable growth and value creation by laying the foundation of its first, catalytic advanced recycling plant at its Wesseling, Germany site. German Chancellor Scholz and Minister-President Wüst attended the celebrations, underscoring the project's importance for both the region's and Germany's goals for a circular, low carbon economy.
Targeted startup for the new unit is set for 2026, as part of the company's strategy to build a profitable Circular and Low Carbon Solutions business.
Using LYB proprietary MoReTec technology, this plant will be the first commercial scale, single-train advanced recycling plant, designed to demonstrate its capability for further scalability. This unit will convert pre-treated, mixed waste plastic into raw materials to produce new plastic polymers that will be sold under the LYB CirculenRevive brand. These polymers complement the company's offerings in mechanically recycled and renewable-based polymers marketed respectively under CirculenRecover and CirculenRenew branding.
"Germany is a strong location for the chemical industry and the new LYB plant in Wesseling represents the future viability of this industry. As the first large-scale industrial plant for chemical plastic recycling, it is a significant step towards a circular economy", said Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz. "The German government is committed to strengthening and further enhancing Germany as a location for the chemical industry."
"With investments like these, we are creating solutions and addressing rising demand for more sustainable products from our customers and society," said LYB CEO Peter Vanacker. "The new facility has the potential to turn back hard to recycle, processed mixed plastic waste of more than 1.2 million German citizens into valuable raw materials to make new products. And this is only the first unit that we are building, we are already working on our future MoReTec plants."
LYB anticipates its MoReTec technology will gradually help shift the use of traditional fossil-based raw materials toward circular resources. Further, the catalytic nature of the technology allows it to conserve energy and significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions, while serving as a blueprint for future investments. LYB received a 40 million euro grant from the EU Innovation Fund for the project1.
Vanacker also called for improved support of European industry. "It's essential we have policies that stimulate demand for sustainable and circular materials. As we make these significant investments in our future, we need a firm, reliable pathway to ensure confidence," Vanacker said, echoing the Antwerp Declaration for an Industrial Deal, which he presented with other business leaders to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in February of this year.
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Editors notes:
- The planned investment is in the range of several hundred million Euros.
- This represents a major milestone for our advanced recycling technology and overall sustainability, supporting reaching LYB goal to produce and market at least 2 million metric tons of recycled and renewable-based polymers annually by 2030
- The new plant is expected to have an annual capacity of 50,000 metric tons per year. It is critical to help divert plastics otherwise destined to landfill and/or incineration and turn them back into valuable, raw materials.
- The facility addresses customer demand at scale for higher quality, low carbon, drop-in solutions.
- The advanced recycled feedstock produced by the MoReTec facility will be used for the production of polymers sold by LYB under the CirculenRevive brand for use in a wide range of applications, including medical and food packaging.
- Additional investments are planned at a circular hub that LYB plans to build close to the Wesseling plant region. Other regional projects include:
- a joint venture in Lower Saxony that will turn post-consumer, mixed plastic waste into raw materials for mechanical and advanced recycling
- a closed-loop recycling center in Hesse to process plastic parts from cars and household appliances
- an agreement to become full owner of solvent-based recycling company APK in Saxony-Anhalt region.
- Additional quotes:
"Today is an important day for the future of our industry location. The plant is more than just a construction project – it is a symbol of the successful transformation towards a sustainable and innovative industry. With this investment, LYB is demonstrating that our federal state is an attractive location for leading companies that are ready to tackle the challenges of the future," says Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Action and Energy of the State of North Rhine Westphalia. "The technologies that are being developed here will make a significant contribution to strengthening our competitiveness and creating a more sustainable economy. We are proud to be taking this path together and I look forward to the positive momentum that will come from this project."
"North Rhine-Westphalia is Germany's largest chemical location – and one of the most innovative on the road to climate neutrality. We want to remain a strong industrial state and at the same time become climate neutral. With the groundbreaking of LYB MoReTec-1, LYB is providing important and forward-looking impetus for a strong circular economy in the plastics and chemical industry," says Hendrik Wüst, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia. "Only by working together can we strengthen North Rhine-Westphalia as a research and industrial location and expand our leading position in the field of chemical recycling. To do this, the chemical industry in particular needs better framework conditions, in Europe and at the federal level."
About LyondellBasell
We are LyondellBasell (NYSE:LYB) – a leader in the global chemical industry creating solutions for everyday sustainable living. Through advanced technology and focused investments, we are enabling a circular and low carbon economy. Across all we do, we aim to unlock value for our customers, investors and society. As one of the world's largest producers of polymers and a leader in polyolefin technologies, we develop, manufacture and market high-quality and innovative products for applications ranging from sustainable transportation and food safety to clean water and quality healthcare. For more information, please visit www.lyondellbasell.com or follow @LyondellBasell on LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements
The statements in this release relating to matters that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions of management of LyondellBasell which are believed to be reasonable at the time made and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially based on factors including, but not limited to, our ability to meet our sustainability goals, including the ability to increase production of recycled and renewable-based polymers to meet our targets and forecasts, and reduce our emissions and achieve net zero emissions by the time set in our goals; our ability to build a profitable Circular & Low Carbon Solutions business; and the successful construction within the anticipated timing, and operation of the facilities described in this release. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the "Risk Factors" section of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, which can be found at www.LyondellBasell.com on the Investor Relations page and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov.
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