Alterra’s proprietary thermochemical process is already deployed at an industrial-scale facility in Akron, Ohio. The US company  will continue to operate independently in the rest of the world with the aim of commercializing the technology through licensing

“Acquiring the rights to Alterra Energy’s technology in Europe enables us to offer a holistic solution to our partners,” says Heikki Färkkilä, vice president chemical recycling at Neste Renewable Polymers and Chemicals. “Neste will be able to provide the full chemical recycling package: from waste plastic to product, offering high-quality drop-in feeds for the production of new polymers and chemicals.”

Neste said the companies’ ongoing joint technology development and the continued processing of mixed plastic feeds in the Akron facility have given it confidence that the Alterra Energy technology is “among the winning solutions for the liquefaction of waste plastic material.”

The Finnish group is planning to use the US firm’s technology in a proposed plant in Vlissingen, the Netherlands, as part of a partnership with Ravago.

To scale up processing capacities for the liquefied waste plastic, Neste is currently performing a feasibility study to examine investing in pretreatment and upgrading steps at its Porvoo refinery. Targeted capacity of this first step is 400,000 t/y.

The company concluded a first series of trial runs processing liquefied waste plastic at Porvoo last year. It will continue to carry out additional trial runs with larger volumes during 2022.

Author: Elaine Burridge, Freelance Journalist