PureCycle targets Japan for plastic recycling facility

PureCycle Technologies Inc., Orlando, Florida, and Mitsui & Co. Ltd., a Tokyo-based global trading and investment company, have announced plans to develop and operate a polypropylene (PP) recycling plant in Japan. In 2021, the two sides announced a signed memorandum of understanding for a possible plastics recycling facility to be built in Japan.

The plant is designed to transform postuse PP into an "ultra-pure" recycled resin and is expected to have an annual capacity of 59,000 metric tons. The companies are targeting the completion of a plant in 2026.

PureCycle CEO Dustin Olson says the final options for site locations are between major population and industrial centers. However, not much detail was given about where they were looking. The goal is to optimize supply chain activities for both feed and product.

“We believe this site will become a strategic sustainable supply location for critical Japanese industries like automotive, electronics and consumer product companies,” Olson says.

PureCycle uses a patented technology that can remove virtually all contaminants, colors and odors from PP scrap and transform it into a plastic resin that can be used multiple times, according to the company.

"Through this new joint project with PureCycle, Mitsui aims to contribute to the overall reduction of plastic waste and the establishment of a circular economy in Japan,” says Hiroshi Kakiuchi, chief operating officer of the performance materials business unit at Mitsui. “By securing plastic waste as the raw material, manufacturing recycled polypropylene resin, and expanding the applications of the material for consumer goods, food containers and automobile interiors, Mitsui aims to make a significant contribution to the creation of a more sustainable society."

This is the latest example of PureCycle's global-growth strategy. Earlier this year, the company announced the site of its first PP recycling facility in Europe at the Port of Antwerp-Bruges' Next Gen District in Belgium. PureCycle's first PP recycling plant in Asia is planned to open in 2025 in South Korea.