Mitsubishi Chemical joins forces with partners to develop new plastic recycling program

Following the signing of a license agreement in June this year, Mitsubishi Chemical (MCC) recently announced that it has made a final investment decision on the development of its first Hydro-PRT (Hydrothermal Plastics Recycling Technology) project in Japan
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According to an announcement from Mura Technology, the UK-based chemical recycler that developed the technology, and its exclusive licensing partner KBR, the new plant will be built at MCC's Ibaraki plant, which will be the first of its kind in Japan; Doug Kelly, President of KBR Technology : "This will bring us closer to our shared goal of a clean and green future
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In addition, the process provides a deliverable solution for Japan to achieve its 25% reduction in single-use plastic waste by 2030
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Hydro-PRT is a technology developed by Mura, based on the use of supercritical water, that enables mixed plastic waste to be recycled as a feedstock for new plastics and other products
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This technology is capable of processing many types of plastics that cannot currently be recycled through traditional mechanical recycling processes
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According to the company, this plastic waste can be recycled an unlimited number of times through Hydro PR
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Furthermore, the use of supercritical water makes the process inherently scalable, allowing it to be scaled up efficiently when needed
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In addition to the partnership with MCC, Mura and KBR are currently exploring other projects in Asia, the US and Europe to complement the global rollout of Hydro PRT and achieve Mura's goal of developing 1 million tonnes of recycling capacity by 2025
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"Plastic waste is polluting our environment at an alarming rate, not to mention the carbon emissions from using fossil fuels to make virgin plastic," said Steve Mahon, CEO of Mura Technology.
"We now need a global, sustainable Flexible and scalable solutions
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That's why we're taking an international approach - scaling fast, meeting challenges
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Our partnership with KBR makes this global expansion possible and we look forward to working with them in the coming months Explore new future projects in Europe and Asia
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Construction of the new plant is expected to be completed in 2023
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The initial processing capacity will be 20,000 tonnes of plastic waste per year, while MCC is already studying the possibility of increasing capacity in the future
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Initially, the project will aim to use industrialized plastics
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However, as Japan generates around 9 million tonnes of plastic waste each year, MCC will seek to expand the scope of the project to include the use of post-consumer plastics as feedstock
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"We see this as an extremely important step forward, and MCC will continue to research and implement circular economy solutions," said Shigeru Handa, Chief Operating Officer of Mitsubishi Chemical Basic Materials
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