Covestro to set up polycarbonate recycling plant in city

Covestro is investing in the production of more sustainable polycarbonates in the Asia-Pacific region, which is an exciting step toward complete circularity.

As one of the world's leading manufacturers of high-quality polymer materials and their components, Covestro contributes to sustainability and quality of life in a variety of ways and is committed to being fully circular.

It announced fresh plans to build its first dedicated line for the mechanical recycling (MCR) of polycarbonates at its integrated site in Shanghai on August 19.

The new MCR line will address the growing need for more sustainable solutions, including Post-Consumer-Recycled (PCR) products, which will be predominantly employed in the compounding stage in the manufacture of electrical and electronic devices, automotive applications, and consumer goods.

The line, which represents an investment of more than 27 million euros, will be capable of supplying more than 25,000 tons of high-quality polycarbonates and blends incorporating mechanically recycled material each year after being commissioned in 2023.

"The MCR production line is another exciting step we have taken to fulfill our commitment toward a circular economy and achieve our goal to become operationally climate neutral by 2035," said Sucheta Govil, chief commercial officer of Covestro.

"Recycling plastic waste is absolutely essential to the circular economy and addresses one of the major global challenges we face together as a society. We will continue to invest in expanding and improving our capacity for recycled plastics, and lead the industry to create materials with higher recycled content," Govil said.

The company aims to deliver more than 60,000 tons of polycarbonates with recycled content in the Asia-Pacific region annually by 2026.

"We will continue to invest in extending our capabilities to satisfy the significant growth in demand for more sustainable and circular solutions from our downstream clients," said Lily Wang, president of business entity Engineering Plastics at Covestro.

"This MCR production line is the most recent example of our efforts in this area, and it demonstrates our commitment to accelerating the transition to more sustainable products in this region, particularly in China."

To better serve the ASEAN market, the company is also repurposing a compounding facility at its Map Ta Phut site in Thailand into a line for mechanical recycling.

The conversion of the line, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2022, aims to pave the way for circular econony and meet market demand for polycarbonates derived from PCR content across numerous industries in the ASEAN region.

"The new developments in China and Thailand are not only about investing in capacity increase but also about improving our capability to produce more products with higher recycled content and more consistent quality," said Nicolas Stoeckel, head of operations in the Engineering Plastics segment.

"These developments will further strengthen Asia's reputation as the world's leading producer of polycarbonate PCR grades."

The two new facilities in Shanghai and Map Ta Phut will boost Covestro's output of PCR polycarbonates Makrolon® R and Bayblend® R, which include up to 75 percent of recycled content and can contribute to a carbon footprint reduction of up to 50 percent, while meeting performance and eco-label requirements.