Corbion and Total to build first world-scale PLA plant in Europe
Canadian Plastics
Materials SustainabilityThe new plant is planned to be located in Grandpuits, France and to be operational in 2024 with projected annual capacity of 100,000 tons per year.
Chemical suppliers Corbion and Total have announced their plan to build a new polylactic acid (PLA) bioplastics plant in Europe through their Total Corbion PLA joint venture.
The plant, being described as the first world-scale PLA production facility in Europe, is expected to have a capacity of 100,000 tons per year. The new plant is planned to be located in Grandpuits, France and to be operational in 2024.
“This is excellent news for Corbion, Total, our joint venture, and for the world,” said Olivier Rigaud, Corbion CEO. “Fully in line with our purpose — ‘preserving what matters’ — PLA is increasingly finding its place as a bioplastic, enabling acceleration toward a circular economy. In our recently released Advance 2025 strategy, one of our goals, together with Total, is to become the market leader in PLA. This new plant puts us firmly on track to achieve that goal.”
Plant construction is expected to require approximately €200 million (US$233 million) in capital expenditures.
Corbion and Total will participate equally in the funding of the project; third-party debt may also be part of the financing. This event also triggers a final settlement related to the Total Corbion PLA joint-venture lactide plant, the company stated. Corbion will continue to be the supplier of lactic acid to the Total Corbion PLA joint venture. Earlier this year, Corbion announced it will build a new lactic acid plant with the latest low-emission technology in Thailand which is expected to be operational in 2023.
