Neste And Mitsui Chemicals Will Use Bio-Based Hydrocarbons To Make Plastics And Chemicals

Neste, Mitsui Chemicals and Toyota Tsusho Co., Ltd. announced that they will join forces to use 100% bio-based hydrocarbons for industrial-scale production of renewable plastics and chemicals for the first time in Japan.

In this cooperation, Mitsui Chemicals will use Neste RE(tm) (100% bio-based hydrocarbons produced by Neste) in the cracking plant of its Osaka plant during 2021 to replace some fossil raw materials to produce various plastics and plastics. Chemicals.

Neste RE is an efficient solution that can be used alone or in combination to create products with the same quality as those produced from traditional raw materials based on virgin petroleum.

In this way, Mitsui Chemicals will become the first company in Japan to use bio-based raw materials in its cracking furnace.

The collaboration between Neste, Mitsui Chemicals and Toyota Tsusho will enable brand owners and other potential customers in the Asian market, especially customers in Japan, to start incorporating renewable plastics and chemicals into their products and services.

Neste RE raw materials will be made entirely from renewable raw materials, such as bio-based waste and residual oil, without any petroleum.

By using Neste RE, Mitsui Chemicals is able to produce plastics and chemicals and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions during its life cycle. Mitsui Chemicals will be able to produce renewable ethylene, propylene, C4 fractions and benzene, etc., and process them into basic chemicals such as phenol or plastics such as polyethylene and polypropylene without changing the quality of these derivatives; their quality will be Comparable to traditional products.

Mitsui Chemicals and Toyota Tsusho intend to obtain the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC), which is widely accepted in Europe.

Akio Hirano, Corporate Sustainability Management Executive Officer of Mitsui Chemicals, said: "In order to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, Mitsui Chemicals is seeking to help achieve a circular economy by pursuing the two pillars of recycling and the use of bio-based alternatives.

"Converting fossil raw materials into bio-based raw materials will help combat global warming, and it is seen as an important strategic priority to promote carbon neutrality by 2050. With this in mind, Mitsui Chemicals will not only use high-quality biological materials Based on raw materials and processes to develop materials, and will also cooperate with stakeholders to make biomass widely used in society."

"The success of bringing sustainable plastics and chemicals to the market can only be achieved when all parties in the value chain work closely together. Therefore, we are very excited about our cooperation with Mitsui Chemicals and Toyota Tsusho, the leaders of these two industries. Together with us, we will start producing high-quality, high-performance plastics with 100% bio-based Neste RE for the first time in Japan. Through this cooperation, we can greatly reduce emissions related to the use of fossil raw materials and help Japan achieve its national climate The bio-component targets related to polymers are fully in line with Neste's mission and the promotion of circular bioeconomy." said Mercedes Alonso, Executive Vice President of Neste's Renewable Polymers and Chemicals Division.

Kazuyuki Urata, Chief Operating Officer of Toyota Tsusho’s Chemical and Electronics Division, said: “We are very pleased that our ten-year experience has brought one of the best circular economy solutions from upstream to downstream for our plastics market. This project is very supportive. The progress of the material sustainability issues identified by our company."