SCGC Drives Green Innovation, Moving Forward to Carbon Neutrality, Partners with Avantium from Netherlands, Converting CO2 to Carbon-Negative Plastic, Developing Pilot Phase for Soaring Global Demand

AMSTERDAM — 3 July 2023 – SCG Chemicals Public Company Limited or SCGC, a leading integrated chemical player in Asia and an innovator of chemical innovations and solutions, announces that it has agreed to partner with Avantium N.V., a leading technology provider in renewable chemistry from Netherlands. Under this partnership, SCGC and Avantium agreed to drive carbon neutrality by further developing CO₂ into PLGA or carbon-Negative plastic and scale-up to a pilot plant with an indicative capacity of 10 tonnes per annum.

Carbon-negative plastic PLGA

“We are delighted that we have entered into this partnership with SCGC, a partner that understands that innovation and bold action is the key to lasting positive impact for a sustainable future. Under this partnership, we can further develop the very promising carbon-negative plastic PLGA and bring this material to the next commercialization phase. Both Avantium and SCGC would also welcome other strategic and complementary partners to participate in this collaboration”, says Tom van Aken, Chief Executive Officer at Avantium.

Volta Technology: uses electrochemistry to convert CO₂ to chemical products

Avantium is a frontrunner in developing and commercialising innovative technologies for the production of chemicals and materials based on sustainable carbon feedstocks, i.e. carbon from plants or carbon from the air (CO₂). The technology platforms, called Volta Technology, uses electrochemistry to convert CO₂ to high-value products and chemical building blocks including glycolic acid. By combining glycolic acid with lactic acid, the company can produce PLGA, a carbon-negative polymer with valuable characteristics: it has an excellent barrier against oxygen and moisture, has good mechanical properties, is recyclable and is both home compostable and marine degradable. This makes PLGA a more sustainable and cost-effective alternative.

Since early 2023, SCGC and Avantium have been working together to further evaluate PLGA. To this end, Avantium has produced samples of different PLGAs, which have been evaluated at SCGC’s Norner AS facility. The two parties have now agreed to take the next step in their cooperation and establish a Joint Development Agreement. Under this agreement, SCGC and Avantium intend to further evaluate PLGA in order to subsequently scale up production of glycolic acid monomer and PLGA polyester in the next two years to a pilot plant.

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About SCGC SCG Chemicals or SCGC is a leading integrated chemical player in ASEAN with strategic bases in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand, offering a full range of petrochemical products ranging from upstream production of olefins to downstream production of 3 main plastics resins: polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyvinyl chloride. SCGC focuses on inventing "Innovation That's Real" to drive the ASEAN economy and elevate the quality of life in accordance with ESG and circular economy. SCGC develops technology and innovation toward HVAs in infrastructure, consumable packaging, automotive, health and well-being, and energy solutions, while ensuring sustainable environmental stewardship.

About Avantium Avantium is a leading technology development company and a frontrunner in renewable chemistry. Its offices and headquarters are in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Avantium develops novel technologies based on renewable carbon sources as an alternative to fossil-based chemicals and plastics. In 2018, Avantium opened the Dawn Technology™ pilot biorefinery in Delfzijl, the Netherlands. Avantium also provides R&D solutions in the field of sustainable chemistry and is the leading provider of advanced catalyst testing technology and services to accelerate catalyst R&D. Avantium works in partnership with like-minded companies around the globe to create revolutionary renewable chemistry solutions from invention to commercial scale. For more information, visit https://www.avantium.com/