UK-based Itero Technologies announced it has received environmental and building permits for the Itero Brightlands Demonstration plant, allowing its construction and operation.
It will be the chemical recycler’s first demonstration plant for its patented pyrolysis technology. The 27,000 tonnes/year demonstration facility will convert mixed, plastic waste into recycled naphtha, recycled waxes, pyrolysis oils, and gas. The plant will be located at the Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Sittard-Geleen, Limburg, the Netherlands.
The plant will demonstrate Itero's pyrolysis technology at a larger-scale, which currently operates at pilot scale at its West London Pilot Plant.
The permits allow for a wide range of feedstock to be tested, showcasing the iterative approach to Itero's technology, deepening their knowledge of applications for chemical recycling and improving efficiencies, the company said in a statement.
"Receiving the appropriate permitting was the expected and necessary step to progress to the next phase of our project,” siad Sieto Schenkel, project manager at Itero. “There is great excitement for our technology, and we look forward to continuing to work closely with Brightlands Chemelot Campus and Brightlands Circular Space to progress our circular and sustainable impact”.
Itero signed a lease with Brightlands Chemelot Campus at the end of 2020 and first received funding for the project in 2022. Investors include the Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO), the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, and a €6 million investment, led by Infinity Recycling’s Circular Plastics Fund. In February 2024, Itero was awarded €5 million from the European Union’s Just Transition Fund (JTF).
When the project was first announced, Itero expected it to become operational in 2023. This January, the company pushed the expected start date to mid-2025. The building and environmental permits announcement did not include an expected date for beginning of operations.