Borealis, Infinium in CO2-based polymer deal

Spanish Market: Emissions, Petrochemicals
20/08/24

Austrian petrochemical company Borealis will manufacture polyolefins at its site in Porvoo, Finland using CO2-based "e-naphtha" produced by US by e-fuels firm Infinium.

Under the agreement, Infinium will ship "commercial" volumes of e-naphtha to Porvoo from its facility in Corpus Christi, Texas. The first shipment departed the US in May.

The e-naphtha is a "sustainable drop-in alternative" to fossil-based naphtha, the firms said. It will be processed in the same way to create polyolefins.

E-naphtha can be produced from CO2 from biogenic sources or from carbon capture at industrial facilities such as oil refineries. The e-naphtha feedstock will be tracked through the polymer production process under an ISCC+ certificate, which Infinium's Corpus Christi facility has received.

"Atmospheric carbon is a strategic element of the Borealis Circular Cascade approach to foster the transition toward greater circularity in plastics and carbon," said Borealis' vice-president of circular economy solutions Mirjam Mayer.

"It allows us to serve the needs of our customers while reducing their carbon footprints."

By Will Collins

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02/12/24

Countries diverge on plastic production in global talks

Singapore, 2 December (Argus) — Countries have failed to reach a consensus in negotiations for a global treaty to tackle plastic pollution, partly because of disagreements about whether its scope should include plastic production. The fifth session of the UN's Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) which took place over 25 November-1 December was supposed to result in an international, legally binding instrument to tackle plastic pollution. But negotiations ultimately ended without an agreement in South Korea on 1 December. The UN Environment Programme's (UNEP's) executive director Inger Andersen acknowledged on 1 December that the session did "not quite" achieve consensus, but added that it is "not for want of trying". Countries instead agreed on a draft text, which will "serve as the starting point for negotiations" next year, the UNEP said on 2 December. Plastic production A key point of disagreement was regarding the inclusion of a legally-binding pledge to cut plastic production, echoing the discussions during a preliminary meeting in September when plastic production limits also emerged as a major sticking point. Many countries want the treaty to tackle the entire plastic value chain, including production, but this met resistance from oil-producing countries. Panama on 28 November put forth a proposal, backed by over 100 countries, to adopt a global target to "reduce the production of primary plastic polymers to sustainable levels" under article 6 of the draft text. It also suggested that countries must report their production, imports and exports of primary plastic polymers and measures taken to achieve the global target. But Kuwait, on behalf of like-minded countries, reiterated on 1 December that "the objective of this treaty is to end plastic pollution — not plastic itself." Kuwait hopes that the treaty will address the "core issue" of plastic pollution through "improved waste management systems, recycling infrastructure, and innovations in material design", as opposed to plastic production cuts. "Attempting to phase out plastic as a material, rather than addressing the issue of plastic pollution, risks undermining global progress and exacerbating economic inequalities," Kuwait added, noting that there has been no solution offered on what can replace plastic across its applications. By Tng Yong Li Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Denmark pledges DKr150mn to Brazil's Amazon fund

29/11/24

Denmark pledges DKr150mn to Brazil's Amazon fund

Sao Paulo, 29 November (Argus) — Denmark will donate 150mn Danish kroner ($21.3mn) to Brazil's Amazon fund, adding the Nordic country to a growing list of nations supporting the South American country's efforts to preserve the Amazon forest. The Amazon fund issues grants to projects that prevent, monitor and combat deforestation while promoting conservation and sustainable development in the Amazon. The fund was created in 2008 and is managed by Brazil's Bndes development bank. It has R4.5bn ($750mn) under management and has supported 114 projects to date. Norway is the fund's largest donor, having pledged R3.5bn, followed by German development bank KfW with R388mn and the US with R291mn. Other donors include the UK, Switzerland and Japan. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Cop 29 Article 6 deal ushers in new carbon markets era

29/11/24

Cop 29 Article 6 deal ushers in new carbon markets era

New NDCs will show how many countries aim to use Article 6 mechanisms towards climate goals London, 29 November (Argus) — Countries concluded nine years of negotiations on UN-level carbon market mechanisms at the Cop 29 climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, opening up new avenues for carbon trading that will present both opportunities and challenges for existing systems. Cop 29 ended last week with agreement on the crucial outstanding elements to allow the full operationalisation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which includes two mechanisms designed to help countries co-operate on meeting their emissions cut targets, or nationally determined contributions (NDCs), through carbon trading. Article 6.2 provides for the bilateral trading of so-called internationally traded mitigation outcomes (Itmos) between countries, while Article 6.4 establishes the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM). The mechanisms distinguish themselves from existing carbon markets largely in the rules and methodologies underpinning the credits. Article 6.2 credits will be "correspondingly adjusted", meaning emissions savings cannot be double-counted by the buyer and seller. And Article 6.4 specifically requires the downward adjustment of emissions cut pathways over time, as well as providing environmental and human rights safeguards and a buffer pool to address any reversal of achieved mitigation. This offers potential guidance to other carbon markets, whether existing schemes in need of reform or newly established. The unregulated voluntary carbon market (VCM) has notably suffered a reputational crisis since last year, largely as a result of questions surrounding the integrity of its credits. Brazil's planned emissions trading system is "sure to benefit" from the benchmarks established by Article 6.4, Bruno Carvalho Arruda of the Brazilian foreign affairs ministry said this week. But Article 6 also potentially poses competition to existing systems, if the credits that it issues are perceived to be more robust. "The UN system will not be immune from the same criticisms as the VCM," Switzerland's lead negotiator on international carbon markets under Article 6, Simon Fellermeyer, told delegates at Cop 29. But its basis of legitimacy — an inclusive system, which has been developed over a long period of time — gives confidence to participants and could act as a "guiding star" that other markets could try to align with, he said. Healthy competition There is a role for independent carbon crediting registries, but they will be looking at the UN process for comparison, chair of the Article 6.4 supervisory body Olga Gassan-Zade said following the body's initial adoption of key rules for the mechanism last month. "It's healthy to have competition," she said. The submission of new NDCs under the Paris deal, due in February, should bring some more clarity as to how many countries intend to make use of Article 6 mechanisms towards their goals, as they set out how they intend to meet ever-stricter emissions cut targets, this time for 2035. Some parties, including the EU, have made it clear that they will not use Article 6 to meet their targets under the Paris agreement. But deputy director-general of the European Commission's climate directorate, Jan Dusik, still welcomed the agreement on Article 6.4 at Cop 29 as a "significant achievement", emphasising the "complementary role" it can play for individual member states that want to make additional emissions cuts beyond the bloc's NDC, as well as for EU companies. And the flow of money between regions through Article 6 mechanisms could become all the more vital in light of the $300bn/yr climate finance deal reached in Baku, which is widely regarded as inadequate by developing countries. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

PPO producer Pryme raises capex forecast

29/11/24

PPO producer Pryme raises capex forecast

London, 29 November (Argus) — Dutch plastic-derived pyrolysis oil (PPO) producer Pryme said capital expenditure (capex) will be "significantly higher" than initially estimated for its second planned site in northern Europe, known as Pryme Two. Pryme Two will feature three-five reactor chains with an expected annual output of 50,000-80,000 t/yr of PPO when completed, the company said. Changes to expected reactor train capacities and other design elements as a result of learning from its first site, Pryme One, have led it to increase its capex forecast for the project, although it did not provide further details. Plans for further sites, Pryme Three and Four, remain on hold until funding has been secured for Pryme Two, the company said. The company also announced it had produced 100t of PPO in October and November, bringing the annual yield of PPO to 336t from its Pryme One site. The site will undergo maintenance in the remainder of 2024, and does not expect any more meaningful volumes until 2025. The company is seeking a capital increase of €8-10mn ($8.5mn-10.6mn) "as soon as practicable" in order to support operations, as Pryme One is not expected to reach breakeven cash flow until late 2025 or early 2026, according to the company. The company said it is in the process of renegotiating with its suppliers and customers as it needed to "achieve improved commercial terms" to avoid operating at a loss even when Pryme One achieves production rates in line with its nameplate capacity, which Pryme expects in late 2025. The company said the net loss for October 2024 was €1.9mn and a similar loss is expected in November. As of 28 November, Pryme had a cash balance of €7.4mn. In the third quarter earnings report in November, Pryme said it had revised down the stated production capacity of the plant to 16,700 t/yr from 30,000 t/yr. This is a result of a lower feedstock-to-oil yield expectation — 65pc, compared with a previous estimate of 75pc — and a reduction in the plant's expected input processing capacity to 26,000 t/yr from 40,000 t/yr, as the downtime needed for reactor feeding, and cleaning and maintenance of equipment has proved longer than expected. By George Barsted Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

EU recyclers need support: Sustainable Packaging Summit

29/11/24

EU recyclers need support: Sustainable Packaging Summit

Future regulations give certainty to the recycling industry for the long term, but prompt support is needed to ensure the industry continues to develop London, 29 November (Argus) — Recyclers warned the packaging industry that they needs support now to ensure enough supply will be available for future pledges and legislative targets at Packaging Europe's recent Sustainable Packaging Summit in Amsterdam. Mapping the sustainability challenge Delegates at the summit heard there is growing concern across the value chain around how to bridge the gap between now and 2030 to ensure the recycling industry can survive and continue necessary growth. In the interim years there are significant challenges in the market for recyclers which risk the secure availability of supply that brands and packaging companies need to reach desired recycled content goals in the future. Recyclers stated the industry in Europe is currently in decline, with a swathe of closures recently announced across the region and a lack of investment. Higher fixed costs in Europe, such as the price of electricity, hamper recyclers' ability to remain competitive on world scale, along with subdued demand for recyclates, exacerbated by low cost virgin material and rising imports. Brands noted less focus on sustainability from consumers and companies impacted by reduced consumer confidence and spending. Combined with the availability of lower cost virgin alternatives, this is said to be weighing on the urgency to increase recycled content as companies focus on the bottom line to manage the wider economic challenges the industry is facing. The industry must maintain sustainability momentum, and that sustainability must remain an advantage for companies for the recycling industry to continue to develop, delegates said. Navigating regulatory landscape Uncertainty in the market is hitting investment hard, and regulation is a fundamental step to providing clarity and stability for the European industry, but comes with its own challenges. The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) — which passed through the corrigendum procedure at this week's EU plenary and is now expected to be adopted by ministers on 16 December — is the first time that the waste hierarchy will be regulated consistently across EU member states. This is expected to ease uncertainties in the industry and add confidence in investments and further business planning as and when confirmed. The regulation is the most wide-reaching and ‘most challenging', due to the divergence of industries and interests across the value chain, Wolfgang Trunk, policy officer for the European Commission, said. "It is not perfect" he said, but considering the complexities "we can be content with what is now in the text. There are a lot of issues there, but we are convinced we can remedy and mitigate any concerns. We had to suffer a lot of national derogations at cost of harmonisation, or the scaling up of internal market benefits". Once the text is published the industry will try to adapt to the new framework. Trunk said it is only then the commission will observe the developments and as a backup and as last resort make amendments for specific streams or products which have encountered difficulties as a result of the regulation to come up with a solution. Positive sentiment regarding PPWR was shared by delegates, with may affirming that the industry is ready to move forward to meet the new requirements and quick action is needed to develop and implement the secondary legalisation that is anticipated. But the secretary-general of packaging organisation Europen Francesca Siciliano Stevens reaffirmed that the regulation does not go far enough in securing the single EU market and safeguarding European competitiveness on the global level. The drawbacks of a fragmented market, with varying national regulation and extended producers responsibility (EPR) schemes, were also highlighted, with delegates calling for a singular circular market. Some participants feel that harmonisation remains the weakest part of the regulation, and that political agendas have remained a barrier to overcome these difficulties. It is hoped that swift adoption of secondary legalisation, harmonised standards and the issue of necessary guidance will smooth the adoption of the PPWR. A proposed EU Circular Economy Act, presented in Ursula von der Leyen's policy guidelines upon her re-election as the president of the European Commission in July, was mentioned as a possible measure to reduce the exposure of the recycling industry to cheap virgin polymer prices. But, given the complexities and length of these legislative processes, recyclers may be entitled to reservations on how effectively this will support them in the short term. Reporting headache Packaging companies represented at the summit asked regulators to consider the need to reduce the reporting burden to help circular economy development. Frequent references were made to a ‘tsunami' of regulation, and the burden of reporting challenges around accurate and credibility in data were highlighted across the value chain. Non-harmonised EPR is a concern for the industry, with each member state implementing their own regulations. For global brands there could be upwards of 25 different policies with varying implications to adhere to in Europe alone. Participants called for clear standards and guidelines, as well as and harmonisation in data collection and reporting methodologies across the region in order to navigate the forthcoming headwinds. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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