LyondellBasell and SUEZ increase plastics recycling capacity
Dec 07, 2020, 08:00 ET
Companies expand their Quality Circular Polymers Joint Venture
ROTTERDAM, The Netherlands and PARIS, Dec. 7, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB) one of the world's largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies and SUEZ (EPA: SEV), a world leader in environmental services, today jointly announced the acquisition of TIVACO, a plastics recycling company located in Blandain, Belgium. The company will become part of Quality Circular Polymers (QCP), the companies' existing 50/50 plastics recycling joint venture. With this transaction, QCP will increase its production capacity for recycled materials to approximately 55,000 tonnes per year.
"This latest investment in QCP supports LyondellBasell's ambition to produce and market 2 million tons per year of recycled and renewable source-based polymers by 2030. Extending the plastics lifecycle through recovery, recycling and reuse not only eliminates waste but also produces a product with a lower CO2 footprint," said Richard Roudeix, Senior Vice President Olefins & Polyolefins, Europe, LyondellBasell. "This innovative approach is key to unlocking additional value from existing plastics while addressing brand owners' needs for sustainable products."
"We are thrilled to take a step forward with our long-term partner LyondellBasell. With the new acquisition, we will together speed up the use of quality circular polymers in Europe and support industrial manufacturers' efforts to reach their environmental targets," commented Jean-Marc Boursier, SUEZ Group COO. "It also confirms SUEZ's ambition to become the world leader in environmental services by 2030."
The TIVACO facility operates five production lines capable of processing approximately 22,000 tonnes of recycled plastic per year. This acquisition builds on the companies' 2018 acquisition of QCP, a plastics recycling company in Geleen, the Netherlands which is capable of processing approximately 35,000 tonnes of material per year. Today, recycled materials from QCP can be found in consumer products including Samsonite's S'Cure ECO luggage collection.
QCP is committed to ending plastic waste in the environment. The joint venture leverages the two partners' respective strengths. SUEZ will utilize its leading-edge technology solutions in sorting and recycling to improve the preparation of materials to be recovered at QCP. LyondellBasell will apply its long-standing leadership in innovative plastic production technology, vast experience in product development and deep knowledge of important end markets such as consumer goods, where the company has a strong presence.
Both SUEZ and LyondellBasell are members of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a global, cross-value chain non-profit organization committed to ending plastic waste in the environment. The Alliance brings together a diverse network of resources and expertise to create and scale innovative solutions around the world.
Cautionary statement
The statements in this presentation relating to matters that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions of management of LyondellBasell which are believed to be reasonable at the time made and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. When used in this presentation, the words "estimate," "believe," "continue," "could," "intend," "may," "plan," "potential," "predict," "should," "will," "expect," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. Actual results could differ materially based on factors including, but not limited to, market conditions, the business cyclicality of the chemical, polymers and refining industries; our ability to develop and advance plastic grades that advance sustainability and the circular economy; and our ability to increase our production volumes of products made by recycling or with renewable feedstocks. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the "Risk Factors" sections of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, and our Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2020 and September 30, 2020, which can be found at www.LyondellBasell.com on the Investor Relations page and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov. There is no assurance that any of the actions, events or results of the forward-looking statements will occur, or if any of them do, what impact they will have on our results of operations or financial condition. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made and are based on the estimates and opinions of management of LyondellBasell at the time the statements are made. LyondellBasell does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change, except as required by law.
About QCP
Quality Circular Polymers (QCP) provides brand owners and plastics convertors with polymers of high and consistent quality based on used plastics. Reliable supply, integration, leading technologies and innovative recipes enable QCP to push the circular plastics industry to the next level. More information can be found at www.QCPolymers.com.
About LyondellBasell
LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB) is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and products that are key to advancing solutions to modern challenges like enhancing food safety through lightweight and flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through stronger and more versatile pipes, improving the safety, comfort and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road, and ensuring the safe and effective functionality in electronics and appliances. LyondellBasell sells products into more than 100 countries and is the world's largest producer of polymer compounds and the largest licensor of polyolefin technologies. LyondellBasell offers a circular product portfolio that provides customers with solutions to increase recycled plastic content in their applications with high quality mechanically recycled polymers. In 2020, LyondellBasell was named for the third consecutive year to Fortune magazine's list of the "World's Most Admired Companies." More information about LyondellBasell can be found at www.LyondellBasell.com.
About SUEZ
Since the end of the 19th century, SUEZ has built expertise aimed at helping people to constantly improve their quality of life by protecting their health and supporting economic growth. With an active presence on five continents, SUEZ and its 90,000 employees strive to preserve our environment's natural capital: water, soil, and air. SUEZ provides innovative and resilient solutions in water management, waste recovery, site remediation and air treatment, optimizing municipalities' and industries' resource management through "smart" cities and improving their environmental and economic performance. The Group delivers sanitation services to 64 million people and produces 7.1 billion m3 of drinking water. SUEZ is also a contributor to economic growth, with more than 200,000 jobs created directly and indirectly on an annual basis, and a provider of new resources, with 4.2 million tons of secondary raw materials produced. By 2030, the Group is targeting 100% sustainable solutions, with a positive impact on our environment, health and climate. SUEZ generated total revenue of €18.0 billion in 2019.
SOURCE LyondellBasell Industries
