Itero to Build Plastic Waste Chemical Recycling Plant in the Netherlands
UK chemicals innovator chooses to locate demonstration plant at sustainable hub, Brightlands Chemelot Campus
Recycling technology company Itero has announced plans to build an innovative plant for recycling plastic waste in the Netherlands. The demonstration plant will use Itero’s patented pyrolysis technology to convert waste plastics into oils, wax and gas that can be used to produce new plastic and petrochemical products.
Founded in 2010 and based in London, Itero has created a leading technology that converts hard-to-recycle plastic waste into a raw material that can be used to produce new plastic products. The process reduces emissions associated with both the disposal of plastics by landfill and incineration, and the production of new plastics from fossil-derived petrochemicals.
Europe’s Circular Hub for sustainable solutions
Itero’s demonstration plant will be located at the Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Sittard-Geleen, Europe’s Circular Hub and a key link in the Dutch chemicals ecosystem. It will be a commercial-scale facility with a capacity to process 27 kilotons of mixed and contaminated waste plastics per year. The demonstration plant will be a single module recycling facility, which can be scaled up by adding modules side-by-side. It will require an investment of 25 million Euros and is due to be operational from 2023.
Itero’s announcement follows earlier announcements by Recycling Technologies and Plastic Energy to scale up their technologies for chemical recycling at Chemelot. Chemical recycling is an important ingredient to move towards a world without waste, to which the Netherlands is making a growing contribution.
Ideal location in Dutch chemicals ecosystem
‘We looked at several potential locations on the continent, in the UK and in the Netherlands,’ said Itero CEO, Simon Hansford, explaining the choice for Brightlands Chemelot Campus, ‘but the facilities at Geleen and the support are perfect. We are fully onboard with the Chemelot Circular Hub philosophy.’
Bert Kip, CEO of Brightlands Chemelot Campus, is excited about Itero’s arrival. ‘As a campus, we are committed to a circular future and are one of the partners in the regional alliance dedicated to achieving this, the Chemelot Circular Hub. Itero is a perfect fit in this environment and will help strengthen our ecosystem of parties with groundbreaking technologies to make new raw materials from plastic and other waste. It shows that we are increasingly becoming the place to be, including for international parties.’
Recyling plastic waste contributes to a circular economy
Hansford commented further: ‘The Campus is the ideal location for Itero, with its ecosystem of parties with groundbreaking technologies to make new raw materials from waste including waste plastic. We are excited about the potential for our new technology to provide a solution to the global problem of plastic waste. The first plant will demonstrate our ability to efficiently make valuable raw materials from waste plastic with minimal residual waste needing to go to landfill. But importantly, we can deliver this in a profitable and sustainable way.’
Source: Itero press release
27 January 2021