The collaboration between the British and Brazilian petrochemical giants is ‘part of a wider value chain enhancement’, according to a Shell Chemicals statement. It aims to increase the amount of circular content on Braskem’s polypropylene, which will be commercialised under the brand Wenew. The brand was first launched in 2022 and currently includes 58 polymers with varying amounts of post-consumer recycled content.
Braskem will produce its circular polypropylene using ISCC PLUS-certified feedstock, based on a mass balance approach. Its Wesseling plant has an annual polypropylene production capacity of around 225,000 tonnes.
“Adopting initiatives that include plastic waste recovery, and mechanical and chemical recycling in our production processes is connected to our company’s purpose to provide a more circular and sustainable future, on top of the leading position Braskem has in biopolymers globally,” said Walmir Soller, VP of Olefins and Polyolefins at Braskem Europe & Asia. “This agreement represents an important step to combine Shell’s technology and infrastructure with Braskem’s polymer expertise and market knowledge towards more sustainable and scalable solutions.”
In other circularity efforts, last year Braskem invested $87 million to increase its production of bio-based plastic feedstock in Brazil by almost 59,000 tonnes.