Rumpke and Eastman join forces to expand recycling of PET waste

Rumpke Waste & Recycling (Rumpke) and molecular recycling pioneer Eastman, today announced a groundbreaking partnership to help address the global plastic waste crisis, said the company.

Later this year, Rumpke will begin collecting and sorting hard-to-recycle and colored PET packaging waste, materials that are largely unaddressed in today’s recycling ecosystem and will provide 100 percent of this waste stream as feedstock to Eastman’s molecular recycling process. Eastman will then turn this waste stream into virgin quality polyesters with its molecular recycling technology to be used across a range of packaging applications and to expand the circular economy for polyesters.

“The world is currently grappling with a significant problem, with a large portion of plastic waste either not being collected for recycling, or is considered non-recyclable by traditional methods,” said Jeff Snyder, director of recycling at Rumpke. “This partnership creates a new market for hard-to-recycle colored and opaque waste that is not currently recycled today.”

Colored and opaque PET is used across a range of consumer applications, including personal care and cosmetic packaging, detergent and soap packaging and various dairy and food packaging. Historically many of these applications have been unable to transition to fully circular packaging. Through Rumpke’s investment in innovation processing and Eastman’s molecular recycling technology, this partnership will enable circularity for many applications. By diverting this waste from incineration or landfill, both companies are making significant strides toward their shared vision of a world without waste.

By harnessing the power of innovation, Rumpke and Eastman are keeping fossil resources in the ground and contributing to a more sustainable future. The partnership sets an example for the industry and demonstrates the importance of collaboration in achieving true circularity.

“Rumpke and Eastman are both committed to innovative approaches to reducing plastic waste through collaboration,” said Brad Lich, Eastman executive vice president and chief commercial officer. “This partnership reinforces the complementary nature of molecular and mechanical recycling to keep more raw materials in the circular economy enabling brands to meet their recycled content goals.”

We remind, Effective 15 Feb 2024, or as contracts allow, Eastman Chemical Company is announcing an off-list price Increase in NAR and LAR for the following product: Eastman 2-Ethylhexanol, all grades and packages: USD0.04/lb (USD0.09/kg).

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Tatneft has decided to produce car tires under the Attar brand ("attar" means "horses" in Kazakh) at a newly built tire plant in the city of Saran in Kazakhstan, the oil company's press service said, said Interfax.

"The products will be produced by the Tatneft tire division facility in Saran and sold both in Kazakhstan and exported," the press release says.

Earlier, it was reported that KamaTyresKz LLP, a joint venture of Tatneft and Kazakhstan's Allur, had begun producing tires in December 2022 at a new plant in the city of Saran, Karaganda region of Kazakhstan. This was reported by the press service of the Head of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, who heads the board of directors of Tatneft. The annual production capacity is 3.5 million tires: 3 million tires for passenger cars, and 500,000 tires for trucks.

Tatneft sold its tire business in Russia, which had been producing tires under the Kama and Viatti brands, in mid-2022. It was sold to Tatneftekhiminvest-Holding, a structure that coordinates the activities of enterprises of Tatarstan's petrochemical complex.

Two Tatneft subsidiaries, the Tatneft-Aktiv LLC Technology Park and geophysical company TNG-Algis LLC, acquired the unprofitable Eco Town LLC plant in Kemerovo from local entrepreneurs in the fall of 2022. The plant was originally built to process 10,000 tonnes of large tires per year into crumb rubber.

Tatneft announced in February 2024 that it would create a network of collection and processing points to convert used car tires into recycled materials for the production of recycled tires. The network will cover 17 Russian cities, including 10 cities with a population of over a million.

We remind, Tatneft and Kazakh company KazMunayGas have signed an agreement for a new production site in the Atyrau region of Kazakhstan. The new facility will produce butadiene rubbers for use in tire manufacturing. The joint venture was signed by Nail Maganov, general director of Tatneft, and Alik Aidarbayev, management board chairman of KazMunayGas. Production will commence in 2026 at the SEZ National Industrial Petrochemical Technopark (Free Economic Zone). Approximately 2,000 jobs will be created at the site during the construction period, and more than 700 job positions at the point the facility goes into operation.

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Effective 15 Feb 2024, or as contracts allow, Eastman Chemical Company is announcing an off-list price Increase in NAR and LAR for the following product: Eastman 2-Ethylhexanol, all grades and packages: USD0.04/lb (USD0.09/kg).

We remind, Leading North American recycler, Rumpke Waste & Recycling (Rumpke) and molecular recycling pioneer Eastman, announced a groundbreaking partnership to help address the global plastic waste crisis. Later this year, Rumpke will begin collecting and sorting hard-to-recycle and colored PET packaging waste, materials that are largely unaddressed in today’s recycling ecosystem and will provide 100 percent of this waste stream as feedstock to Eastman’s molecular recycling process.

Founded in 1920, Eastman is a global specialty materials company that produces a broad range of products found in items people use every day. With the purpose of enhancing the quality of life in a material way, Eastman works with customers to deliver innovative products and solutions while maintaining a commitment to safety and sustainability. The company’s innovation-driven growth model takes advantage of world-class technology platforms, deep customer engagement, and differentiated application development to grow its leading positions in attractive end markets such as transportation, building and construction, and consumables.

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ExxonMobil Corporation on 2 Feb 2024 announced 4Q 2023 earnings of USD7.6 bn, or USD1.91/share assuming dilution, said the company.

Earnings excluding identified items were USD10.0 bn, or USD2.48/share assuming dilution. For the full year 2023, the company reported earnings of USD36.0 bn, or USD8.89/share assuming dilution.

“Our consistent strategy and execution excellence across the business delivered industry-leading earnings and enabled us to return more cash to shareholders than our peers in 2023 1,” said Darren Woods, chairman and chief executive officer.

“These results demonstrate the fundamental improvements we’ve made to our business, reflecting our progress in high-grading our portfolio through investments in advantaged projects and select divestments, while, at the same time, driving a higher level of efficiency and effectiveness throughout the business. The foundation of our success comes from the resiliency, hard work and commitment of our people. As I reflect on our industry-leading results over the past year, I have a great sense of pride in what our people accomplished.”

We remind, QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil are on track to commence LNG production at their Golden Pass LNG export terminal, situated on the US Gulf Coast near Sabine Pass, Texas, during the first half of 2025. QatarEnergy, a state-owned entity, holds a substantial 70 percent stake in the Golden Pass project, which boasts a capacity exceeding 18 million metric tons per annum (mtpa). Notably, QatarEnergy will offload 70 percent of the terminal's capacity. In parallel, ExxonMobil, a prominent US-based energy firm, possesses a 30 percent share in the venture.

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Linde plc reported 4Q 2023 results. Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) sales of $2100 M were up 4% versus prior year, said the company.

Compared with 4Q 2022, underlying sales grew 2%, driven by 6% higher pricing partially offset by 4% lower volumes.

Operating profit of $615 M was 29.3% of sales, 420 basis points above prior year and 350 basis points higher when excluding the effects of cost pass-through.

We remind, Linde announced it has signed a record number of new small on-site projects during 2023, its fourth consecutive year of growth, said the company. Linde signed 53 new small on-site projects with capex totaling $270 million for the supply of nitrogen and oxygen during 2023. Small on-site projects use Linde’s proprietary ECOVAR technology, which is designed to be highly efficient, flexible and reliable while helping customers minimize their environmental impact.

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