Corbion partners on advanced PLA recycling

SEOUL - TotalEnergies Corbion, a 50/50 joint venture between Total and Corbion, has formed a partnership aimed at developing the PLA recycling infrastructure and technology in South Korea.

The company has teamed up with bioplastics trader POSCO International, and ESOL, the Korean supplier PLA based products, in the joint venture that is expected to contribute to the Korean Government framework for Carbon Neutrality.

POSCO International, which aims to enter the biobased plastic recycling sector as part of its bid to expand its green portfolio, will oversee and finance the project. ESOL is responsible for retrieving the Post Consumer Recycle (PCR) PLA waste and further advancing the technology to collect, sort. clean, purify and rework the PLA while TotalEnergies Corbion will be supporting the project with its knowledge and experience in the field of advanced PLA recycling.

“TotalEnergies Corbion is already supplying Luminy rPLA, a recycle based PLA, to the South Korean market - creating a local plan to reprocess PLA waste will just accelerate the transition to an even more circular economy,” said Thomas Philippon, TotalEnergies Corbion CEO.

As a low carbon footprint alternative to conventional plastics, the PLA market is rapidly growing. The global bioplastic market is now growing at an annual growth rate of over 20%. The mechanically and advanced recycling of Luminy will allow PLA to become a material of choice for bottles, containers, and other food service and packaging products, the companies said.

ESOL is a Korean Company which brings to market a large range of PLA based products in Korea. Through its supply chain the company aims to establish a PLA recycling structure, leveraging TotalEnergies Corbion existing advanced recycle technology and infrastructure.

POSCO International started trading bioplastics in 2019 and has been growing its market power in the bioplastics market ever since. Playing a major role in the eco-friendly conversion of the plastic industry, POSCO International plans to finish developing the PCR of PLA technology by 2026. It also has started a campaign named Green Butterfly with ESOL to promote the retrieval of used PLA.