PET waste supply secured for planned molecular recycling facility

A long-term supply agreement entered into by Interzero and Eastman will secure the availability of up to 20,000 metric tonnes per year of hard-to-recycle PET household packaging waste for Eastman's previously announced molecular recycling facility in Normandy, France.
Interzero Plastics Recycling, is part of Germany-headquartered Interzero, a provider of closed-loop recycling and circular solutions in Europe. With the largest sorting capacity in Europe it is one of the leading environmental service providers in the field of closing product, material, and logistics cycles. Like its sister company Alba Group ASIA,  it is also led by Dr. Axel Schweitzer, who is chairman and shareholder.
As a complement to mechanical recycling, chemical recycling allows waste plastics to be recycled that were previously ‘unrecyclable’.
The new molecular recycling facility in France that Eastman has planned will become the world's largest material-to-material molecular recycling plant. Once complete, the facility will recycle approximately 160,000 tonnes of hard-to-recycle coloured and opaque PET waste annually into clear and transparent rPET. 
The project is expected to be operational in 2025.

"Eastman is a leader in molecular recycling with decades of innovation expertise. Joining forces by combining the leading know how of Eastman and Interzero is the next step in closing the loop with our partners and a step closer towards a world without waste," said Jacco de Haas, chief commercial officer at Interzero Plastics Recycling.
Eastman's polyester renewal technology unzips polyesters, using either glycolysis or methanolysis to convert them back to their basic monomers to create new materials. The molecules produced are indistinguishable from materials made with virgin or nonrecycled content. This depolymerisation process can be repeated over and over again without degradation over time. With the technology's inherent efficiencies and the renewable energy sources available in France, materials can be produced with significantly less greenhouse gas emissions - 20-30%- compared to processes using fossil fuels.
This agreement marks an important milestone towards Eastman's investment in France.
“The collaboration reinforces the complementary nature of mechanical and molecular recycling, and the importance of working together to create true circularity,” said Brad Lich, Eastman executive vice president and chief commercial officer.