Bluepha Co. Ltd, a China-based synthetic biology company in China, and Netherlands-headquartered PLA producer TotalEnergies Corbion, have signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at fostering the market adoption of PLA/PHA-based solutions in China.
The companies will focus on the development of new high-performance PHA/PLA blends based on Bluepha’s PHA with TotalEnergies Corbion’s Luminy PLA technology.
Calling TotalEnergies Corbion a ‘trustworthy partner’, Teng Li, president and co-founder of Bluepha used a Chinese saying to characterise the collaboration, describing it as ‘Adding wings to the tiger’.
"By combining the complementary properties of these materials, we will significantly expand the application possibilities for brand owners seeking fully biobased material solutions," said Thomas Philipon, CEO of TotalEnergies Corbion.
Bluepha completed construction of its first industrial-scale production facility, called BioFAB1, in 2022 in Yancheng and launched its first portfolio of marine degradable biopolymers during a celebration held this year on 1 March.
Before the MOU signing ceremony, Thomas Philipon was taken on a tour of the new Bluepha PHA Biorefinery.