Page 42 - Plastics News June 2021

Business news

IOCL and Gujarat Government Evergreen to buy CarbonLite’s

sign MOU for Investment Riverside PET recycling facility
Promotion in the US

he Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Vijaybhai Rupani re e n bridge ’ s
Tand Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Gpolye t h yle n e
Steel, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Presided over an MOU terephthalate (PET) recycling
signing ceremony for "Investment Promotion" between the division Evergreen is planning
Government of Gujarat and Indian Oil Corporation Limited to purchase CarbonLite’s
(IOCL) for setting up a Petrochemical and Lube Integration Riverside PET recycling
(LuPech) Project and Acrylics / Oxo Alcohol Project along facility in California, US.
with other infrastructure projects at its Gujarat Refinery CarbonLITE is a producer of
at Vadodara. The total investment outlook for the projects food-grade post-consumer
is approximately Rs 24,000 crore. Also IndianOil's Gujarat recycled PET. The Riverside
Refinery will be implementing India's first Hydrogen facility is capable of recycling
Dispensing Facility as a clean fuel initiative. The LuPech the post-consumer PET bottle and processing it into a
project will produce import substitutes like Lube Oil Base food-grade RPET pellet. The deal, if materialised, will
Stock (LOBS) and Polypropylene. The Acrylics/Oxo Alcohol strengthen Evergreen’s position as a PET recycler and
Project at Dumad and Gujarat Refinery will manufacture food-grade RPET producer. Additionally, Evergreen will
value-added Butyl Acrylate, a key ingredient for paints,
coatings, adhesives, textile chemicals, plasticizer expand its geographical presence in North America
industry, and other similar products.These projects will with locations in the Midwest and West Coast. The
strengthen the Corporation's readiness for venturing into company did not disclose the financial terms of the
petrochemical projects like PVC, Styrene, Acrylonitrile, transaction. Last month, Evergreen broke ground
Poly-Methyl Methacrylate and Ethylene Oxide in future. on its RPET manufacturing expansion at its 35-acre
The Petrochemicals & Specialty products (Gr-II/III LOBS) campus in Clyde, Ohio. The expansion includes the
integration index based on additional crude oil added construction of a 54,000ft² building adjacent to its
under this project is estimated to be 20.7%. During his existing 238,000ft² facility. It will house a new high-
address, Chief Minister Shri Vijaybhai Rupani mentioned volume, food-grade rPET manufacturing line. When
completed, the expansion will double the company’s
manufacturing capacity of food-grade RPET from 40
million pounds to more than 80 million pounds annually
by mid-2022. The completion of this expansion is
expected in mid-2022. In addition, the company will
retrofit its existing RPET pelletising lines with solid-
state polycondensation reactors. Greenbridge CEO
Omar Abuaita said: “As I stated during Evergreen’s
ground-breaking ceremony in early May, we’re in
growth mode and focused on elevating our commitment
to RPET bottle-to-bottle recycling and closing the loop.
“This is an exciting time. Riverside’s recycling and
that Gujarat is a leading State in the field of Oil and food-grade RPET manufacturing capabilities are well
Petrochemicals. The Chief Minister said that "As a result aligned with the great team and operations we have
of the transparent policies, acceleration of 'Ease of Doing in place at Evergreen and our plans to bring more high
Business' and favourable environment for industries, quality, food-grade RPET to our customers.” Evergreen
Gujarat, in spite of the covid pandemic has for the fourth intends to acquire CarbonLite’s PET recycling facility
year in a row, maintained its number one position as the
highest recipient of FDI in the country". in Riverside, California.

Plastics News June 2021 42