Eastman selected by DOE for investment in US molecular recycling facility

Kingsport, Tennessee-based specialty materials company Eastman's second U.S. molecular recycling project has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to begin award negotiations for up to $375 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act funding as part of the Industrial Demonstrations Program (IDP).

Eastman says the DOE announcement underscores its intent to build a second U.S. molecular recycling facility at its location in Longview, Texas, which it selected because of synergies with existing infrastructure and operations, favorable energy supply and footprint and access to western and central U.S. feedstock pools.

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According to Eastman, the Longview location also provides enough space for onsite renewable energy. The investment includes operations that will prepare mixed plastic scrap for processing, Eastman’s next-generation molecular recycling unit to depolymerize scrap, and a polymer facility to create virgin-quality materials for packaging and textiles. The Longview facility will have the capacity to recycle approximately 110,000 metric tons of hard-to-recycle plastic material.

The company expects the investment to bring over 200 full-time jobs to the Longview community, in addition to approximately 1,000 temporary construction jobs during site development and building of the facility.

Eastman has operated in the Longview community for over 70 years and currently has over 1,500 team members at the location.

“We are excited to build our second U.S. world-scale molecular recycling facility at our existing site in Texas,” Eastman CEO Mark Costa says. “The plant will remove significant waste from the region, enable true circularity and set a new benchmark for decarbonization. We have decades of history successfully operating in Longview, and this will be a great investment for the local community.”

The company was selected by the DOE to accelerate the demonstration of low-carbon intensity recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) with this project. Eastman says reaching a collaborative agreement with the DOE enables it to expand the project to include the deployment of thermal heat batteries and onsite solar power. This combined, with the company’s methanolysis technology, achieves a step-change improvement in decarbonizing PET production resulting in rPET with greater than 70 percent reduced carbon emissions compared to fossil virgin production, and approximately 90 percent reduced carbon emissions when including avoided emissions.

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Eastman says its planned project in Longview aligns with the DOE’s goal of catalyzing industrywide change to a low-carbon future. Also, as part of the award from the department, Eastman says it plans to support the renovation of a community center to be used as a hub for community outreach, workforce training and development and other ongoing needs of its community partners.

“We are honored to be selected by the DOE to help fund this important project,” Costa says. “The commitment helps us to further invest in the local community with a comprehensive community benefits plan. The support of these partners is a testament to our technology and the difference we can make for future generations.”

Eastman also has obtained around $70 million in state and local tax incentives in support of the project.

“Texas is where businesses flourish and people prosper,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says. “With our highly skilled workforce, unmatched business climate and reasonable regulations, it is no surprise businesses from around the globe continue to choose to grow in Texas. This additional facility by Eastman in Longview will bring hundreds of good-paying jobs to hardworking Texans and millions in capital investment to East Texas."

In addition to the newly announced facility, Eastman recently has completed its first molecular recycling facility in Kingsport and plans to invest in another location in France.

Kingsport facility ramp-up

Eastman recently announced its Kingsport molecular recycling facility has achieved on-spec initial production and is generating revenue.

The company expects to ramp up production of the new facility over the coming months and enable growth across a range of markets, noting that achieving this milestone enables its pathway to deliver approximately $75 million of incremental earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in 2024 from this facility as it builds momentum in its circular economy platform.

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“We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of our Eastman team members who have worked tirelessly to build and bring this new facility online,” Costa says. “By demonstrating molecular recycling at this scale, we have solidified our position as a leader in the creation of a circular economy. Demand for recycled material at virgin-quality levels from our new facility remains strong, and we are excited to announce this significant next milestone in our journey.”

Eastman’s polyester renewal technology recycles hard-to-recycle plastic bound for landfill or incineration. The company says its technology allows this scrap to be broken down into its molecular building blocks, then reassembled to become virgin-quality material without compromising performance. The company claims it can transform scrap plastic into virgin-quality food contact polyesters with lower greenhouse gas emissions than traditional methods.