Rotterdam will be the center of gravity of the European Bioeconomy from 23 to 25 October. EFIB, the European Forum for Industrial Biotechnology and Bioeconomy, will be held in the Dutch city. The 2023 theme of ‘Industrial biotechnology for a sustainable and resilient global Europe’ reflects the historical strength of the Netherlands in global trade and its present position as one of the world’s biggest food exporters.
Rotterdam will be the center of gravity of the European Bioeconomy from 23 to 25 October. EFIB, the European Forum for Industrial Biotechnology and Bioeconomy, will be held in the Dutch city. The 2023 theme of ‘Industrial biotechnology for a sustainable and resilient global Europe’ reflects the historical strength of the Netherlands in global trade and its present position as one of the world’s biggest food exporters.
UPM and Central Saint Martins (CSM) collaborate to show possibilities for a future beyond fossils. As part of this collaboration design concepts have been developed that have the potential to disrupt traditional product concepts and trigger transformative designs enable sufficiency, recyclability and reuse as well as the substitution of fossil materials. The winning concepts will be unveiled at Design Transforms ’23, an exhibition that is opening in September in conjunction with London Design Festival.
Cologne Bonn Airport has switched to Neste MY Renewable Diesel™ in its diesel-powered ground fleet. Neste’s renewable diesel (also known as HVO100) is made from 100 percent renewable raw materials, and it is in particular used for powering large and heavy vehicles such as the airport’s fire trucks, which are not easy to electrify. In total, switching to Neste MY Renewable Diesel will allow the airport to save almost 3,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) annually compared to the use of fossil diesel. By using Neste MY Renewable Diesel, greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) are reduced by as much as 90%* over the life cycle of the fuel compared to fossil diesel.
Enerkem Inc. and Technip Energies have signed a memorandum of understanding to enter into a Collaboration Agreement aimed at accelerating the deployment of Enerkem’s technology platform for biofuels and circular chemical products from non-recyclable waste materials.
The Lenzing Group, a world-leading provider of specialty fibers for the textile and nonwoven industries, has made significant technical improvements to its Purwakarta site (PT. South Pacific Viscose). Lenzing has invested more than EUR 100 million since 2021 to convert existing production capacity to specialty viscose. With the imminent completion of the investment, Lenzing is in a better position to serve the strongly growing demand for specialty fibers.
Neste, LyondellBasell, Biofibre and Naftex have created a value chain to combine bio-based polymers with natural fiber for the manufacturing of construction elements. The combination of polymers with measurable bio-based content and natural fiber in construction elements creates carbone storage which can help tackle climate change.
SABIC, a global leader in the chemical industry, is now offering bio-based versions of all NORYL™, Flexible NORYL, NORYL GTX™ and NORYL PPX™ resin grades to help customers meet increasingly rigorous sustainability goals. The bio-based versions, formulated with polyphenylene ether (PPE) resin feedstocks certified under International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) PLUS, provide properties similar to those of fossil-based grades. Customers may select from multiple levels of bio-based content for their chosen NORYL product.
Picture from the plant in Ludwigsfelde, Brandenburg. (Picture: SunCoal Industries)
UPM Biochemicals acquired SunCoal Industries GmbH, a German-based company that developed a unique technology portfolio to produce performance products from renewable raw materials. With this acquisition SunCoal Industries’ technology will be integrated into the production of UPM’s BioMotionTM Renewable Functional Fillers (RFF), one of the products to be produced at UPM Biochemical’s first-of-its kind biorefinery in Leuna and strengthen the overall technology portfolio of UPM’s biorefining businesses.
Braskem, the leading global biopolymer producer, and SCG Chemicals, a leading petrochemical company in Thailand and Southeast Asia, have signed a joint venture (JV) agreement to create Braskem Siam Company Limited. Subject to clearance from the relevant anti-trust authorities and final investment decision by the partners, this joint venture aims to produce bio-ethylene from bio-ethanol dehydration and to commercialize I’m greenTM bio-based Polyethylene, using the EtE EverGreenTM technology. The technology results from the partnership agreement between Lummus Technology LLC and Braskem B.V. to develop and license this technology.
Global Bioenergies, a France-headquartered specialist in the conversion of plant-derived resources into chemical compounds used in many cutting-edge fields such as cosmetics and energy, has raised its industrial ambitions and decided to adjust its roadmap to focus as of now on a plant project with greater production capacity than the ViaViridia plant in order to meet the expectations of its industrial, commercial and financial partners.
IL BIOECONOMISTA 