Lyondell Basell continues to advance its plastics recycling efforts with the acquisition of Italy-based thermoplastics compounds manufacturer Mepol Group, the company said March 13.
The acquisition will help Lyondell Basell advance production of sustainable polymer compounds used in recycled plastics. The company will use the materials in its polymers product Circulen Recover, produced using recycled resins, and other sustainable solutions, said Torkel Rhenman, the company’s executive vice president of Advanced Polymer Solutions.
The announcement ties in with Lyondell Basell’s ongoing efforts to increase recycled plastics production. In February, the Dutch chemical company said it would co-invest with Kirkbi A/S, majority owner of the Lego toy brand, in APK AG’s process that converts packaging waste into plastic granules using a solvent-based separation process.
Lyondell Basell and Kirkbi, a holding and investment company that owns a majority stake in the Lego toy brand, will invest about 130 million Euros (US$139.4 million) in APK AG’s Newcycling process for low-density polyethylene. The agreement includes the construction of new plants to boost production capacity for the Newcyling technology, which recycles shredded plastic waste.
In November, Lyondell Basell began engineering work for a new advanced recycling plant at its Wesseling, Germany. LyondellBasell has existing mechanical recycling facilities in the Netherlands and Belgium and is developing new plastic waste sorting and recycling plants in the United States, Germany, China and India.
The acquisition of Mepol is pending regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.
