French polypropylene recycler Synova is doubling its production capacity for high-performance recycled materials to meet growing demand in the automotive industry.
Part of the French energy giant Total, Synova will increase its production rate to 40 kilotonnes per annum by 2021, Total announced in a release.
“By developing the share of recycled raw materials, we provide a concrete response to the challenge of managing the end-of-life of plastics,” said Valérie Goff, senior vice president polymers at Total refining & chemicals.
Based in Normandy, France, Synova was acquired by Total earlier in March.
The investment, according to Total, will consolidates the acquisition of Synova and mark a new milestone in the company’s circular economy target of producing 30% recycled polymers by 2030.
Total has stepped up its sustainability measures in recent months, helping found the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, which has committed over $1bn to tackle plastic pollution, particularly in the oceans.
The company is also working on all forms of recycling to develop high-performance recycled polymers.
The French group supplies its “circular compounds”: polypropylene and polyethylene containing at least 50% recycled material which are claimed to have the same properties as virgin grade polymers.
Total has also joined forces with Citeo, Saint-Gobain and Syndifrais to create a polystyrene recycling channel in France by 2020. The feasibility of large-scale production will be validated at the group’s industrial sites in Carling, France and Feluy, Belgium.
The French company is also a 50% owner of Total Corbion PLA joint venture in Thailand with a capacity of 75,000 tonnes per year of polylactic acid (PLA), a plant-based bioplastic that is recyclable and biodegradable.