Biobased Energy and Materials learned that recently, Dutch green chemical company Avantium announced that it will fully focus on the production and sales of FCDA and PEF technologies. It will stop investing in Ray technology for producing plantMEG (plant-based ethylene glycol) and plantMPG (plant-based propylene glycol) until suitable strategic equity partners are found.
FDCA (Furanedicarboxylic Acid) is a raw material extracted from industrial sugars, used in the bio based plastic PEF (Polyethylene Glycol Furanedicarboxylate). It is a promising alternative to PET and has attracted the attention of global brand owners. Up to now, 15 off take agreements have been signed, including an agreement with beer brewer Carlsberg.
However, the FDCA flagship factory currently being built in Delfzijl, Netherlands is much more expensive than expected. Avantium attributes this to inflation, high interest rates, and supply chain disruptions. In summary, an additional 255 million euros are needed in the coming years, an increase of approximately 63 million euros from the initial forecast of 192 million euros, which will be used to transition to the operation of nuclear power plants.
The factory has an annual production capacity of 50000 tons of FDCA. Debugging will begin in the first quarter of 2024 and production will begin in the second half of 2024. CEO Tom Van Arken expects to generate an annual revenue of 100 million euros starting from 2026, including revenue from selling technology licenses.
Stopping Ray technology will reduce 25 out of 170 positions at Avantium’s Amsterdam headquarters. Avantium plans to raise more funds through additional loans and plans to issue 50 million euros in equity.
Therefore, Avantium will hold a special shareholders meeting on January 24, 2024.
In addition, Avantium continues to advance its Volta technology, which utilizes electrochemistry to convert carbon dioxide into high-value chemical components and sustainable plastic materials, including the highly promising polymer material polylactic acid glycolic acid copolymer PLGA. In July 2023, Volta Technology successfully signed agreements with SCGC (Thai Siam Chemical Group) and Norsk Hydro, intending to continue developing Volta Technology with their (financial) support. In 2024, the company plans to continue developing this technology and expand to a pilot plant of 10 tons per year within the next two years, provided that it can obtain strategic or financial partnerships to fund the next stage of development.
Avantium’s 15 Commercial Off take Agreements
1. Bottles and packaging (food and cosmetics)
2. Fibers used for indoor textiles, fashion, and industrial applications
3. Adhesive.
The purchasing partners include Carlsberg (beer packaging), LVMH (cosmetics packaging), AmBev (bottled), Kvadrat (indoor textiles), PANGAIA (clothing), and Refresco (bottled).Avantium has also partnered with Albert Heiin, the largest chain supermarket in the Netherlands, to enable them to use Avantium’s 100% plant-based PEF to package Albert Heiin’s proprietary brand products. Albert Heiin is the world’s first chain supermarket to plan to introduce PEF packaging.
Once the FDCA flagship factory is put into operation, Refresco (a global independent beverage solution provider) plans to produce Albert Heijn’s new juice bottles from PEF. This will be the first PEF application launched by Albert Heijn store. With partners like Albert Heijn and the 15 steadfast acquirers mentioned earlier, Avantium will be able to further expand and expand its PEF value chain to meet the growing demand for circular and renewable material solutions from global consumers.
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