ICIS launches the world’s first interactive global database of chemical recycling projects

Phil Black - PII Editor 06/12/2021

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LONDON, 28 October 2021 – Targets set by brand-owners and regulators have been contributing to a growing demand for recycled plastics globally, particularly for use in food and beverage packaging. However, supply of high-quality food grade recycled polymer material remains limited. To assist the industry in effectively securing supply of recycled resins suitable for these applications, ICIS has announced the release of the Recycling Supply Tracker – Chemical which provides FMCGs, chemical producers, large converters and retailers with the most comprehensive view of the emerging chemical recycling market.

Many industry players have public sustainability targets and need to understand the capacities in the market to ensure they can source the necessary materials to meet these. As of 2021, the global installed capacity for chemical recycling is under 2.5m tonnes, including both commercial and pre-commercial facilities with Asia Pacific and North America as the leading regions. The ICIS Recycling Supply Tracker – Chemical will provide up to date data including installed capacity, output volume, process, and feedstock, as well as details about the licensor and investors.

Chemical recycling processes can also be used to revert plastic waste back to an earlier molecular state. The ICIS Recycling Supply Tracker – Chemical has identified that, in terms of capacity, only around 20% of the global recyclers currently produce polymers as an output of their chemical recycling facilities.

The ICIS Recycling Supply Tracker – Chemical is updated with new projects and project developments as they happen, helping the industry understand the pace of growth in this sector. Less than 30% of projects are currently operating at commercial scale, but over half of the plants identified are expected to start-up in the next 3 years.

Louise Boddy, Head of Commercial Strategy, Sustainability at ICIS, said, “Plastic waste is one of the biggest issues facing society and the investment now going into the development of new technologies to deal with plastic waste could be a game changer in the prevention of environmental leakage of used plastic.”

Boddy continued, “Efforts to bring more complex technology and greater scale to this industry are accelerating fast and ICIS is detailing these developments with its new supply tracker, helping to foster partnerships and investments that improve circularity and prevent waste.”

Available through ICIS Digital, the tracker is the world’s only interactive database on global chemical recycling projects. Based on 18 years of leading recycled market expertise, with data sourced and maintained by a team of analysts with deep market knowledge and daily interactions with the marketplace, it offers the ability to filter, download and connect with suppliers.