Port of Amsterdam Welcomes the World of Chemical Recycling
NETHERLANDS – The Port of Amsterdam has begun the construction of a new facility that will convert non-recyclable plastic into fuel for the transport sector, estimated to reduce CO2 emissions by 57,000 tonnes per year. The project, by Dutch company Bin2Barrel, which focuses on the development of plastic-to-fuel projects, will see synthetic materials that could not be reused otherwise, now become reusable in a useful application, while at the same time offering a more sustainable alternative for traditional transport fuels.
The ultimate goal is the application of the produced substances in the production of new synthetic materials, in other words chemical recycling. This brings the mission of Bin2Barrel fully in line with the targets of the Dutch government, which recently added chemical recycling to its national waste management plan. The plant will be built in collaboration with Port of Amsterdam and is expected to be up and running by the end of this year.
The plant, which has been made possible by an investment of approximately €28 million, will aim to produce more than 30 million litres of fuel per year out of 35,000 tonnes of non-recyclable plastic. The flow of non-recyclable plastic comes from Dutch waste collectors and processors, who would otherwise just burn waste for lack of any other applications. In combustion of the produced fuel, the return on energy is nearly three times higher (80%) than in direct burning of plastic in waste incinerators (33%). Roon van Maanen, Head of Circular & Renewable Industry at Port of Amsterdam, commented:
“The use of plastic and the lack of a proper processing of plastic cause massive pollution worldwide. Bin2Barrel introduces innovative and badly needed technology that will enable us to make use of a currently non-recyclable flow of waste in a manner that makes perfect sense. By creating a new product from an otherwise problematic waste product, Bin2Barrel fits perfectly within the mission of Port of Amsterdam to facilitate energy transition as well as transition to a circular economy.”
The processing of non-recyclable plastic waste in the new plant it is estimated will lead to that reduction of 57,000 tonnes of reduced CO2 emissions a year compared to current waste management options. In addition, Bin2Barrel say that the produced fuel has the same sustainability level as biodiesel, further contributing to the environment. Floris Geeris, co-founder of Bin2Barrel
“We are proud that this plant, which is the first of its kind in the world, will help us contribute to energy transition. We provide a solution that will process non-recyclable plastic with a higher efficiency, while at the same time producing fuel with an extremely low emission.”
The aim is to eventually build four plants in the Port of Amsterdam, expanding into the entire Benelux and Germany, in order to make better use of the approximately 25 million tonnes of non-recyclable plastic available per year throughout Europe. Eventually, the focus will be shifted to extracting valuable chemical components from the plastic, instead of the production of fuels.
Photo: Artist impression B2B Amsterdam
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