Neste and ILLIG have entered into a strategic partnership to advance the use of more sustainable solutions in the production of thermoformed plastic packaging through demonstration cases.
The partners combine Neste’s expertise in providing renewable and recycled materials for polymers production and ILLIG’s expertise in manufacturing thermoforming systems to create practical showcases.
In spring 2022 and together with companies LyondellBasell and Fernholz, the project participants already successfully ran a feasibility study along the value chain turning renewable Neste RE™ feedstock into polypropylene with measurable C14 bio-based content.
The study showed that further processing steps along the value chain – including cracking, polymerisation, sheet extrusion and thermoforming – could be performed without any deviations from processing fossil raw materials.
As part of the new cooperation agreement, ILLIG and Neste now intend to conduct similar demonstration case studies to promote the usage of renewable feedstock like Neste RE especially in demanding applications such as packaging suited for food contact or technical applications such as consumer electronics.
“Renewable and recycled raw materials for polymers such as Neste RE are already being used today to reduce the sector’s reliance on fossil resources. It’s now a question of scaling up their share to make a bigger positive sustainability impact,” said Jeroen Verhoeven, vice president value chain development at Neste’s Renewable Polymers and Chemicals business unit.
“Together with ILLIG, we can verify the drop-in nature of our solutions and the shift to more sustainable raw materials in the production processes in very practical demonstration cases, which can serve as blueprints for large-scale and real value chains. Our goal is to demonstrate what’s possible already today to promote these solutions in the industry. By demonstrating the feasibility of renewable and recycled materials along value chains in demonstration cases, we can foster their acceptance on a larger scale.
“We work together with our partners, customers and their customers in our Techn Center on a daily basis to work towards renewable and circular solutions,” says Sven Engelmann, Director of ILLIG Technology Center and Packaging Development. “The partnership with Neste is a major driver in achieving that goal.”
Neste and ILLIG to showcase sustainable solutions
