PETpla.net Insider 07+08 / 2013

NEWS 13 PET planet insider Vol. 14 No. 07+08 Alpla and Avantium team up for PEF Avantium, a renewable chemicals company, and Alpla Werke Alwin Lehner GmbH, plastic converters, have announced that they have entered into a Joint Develop- ment Agreement for the development of PEF bottles. Alpla becomes the third company – after Coca-Cola and Danone – to collaborate with Avantium on PEF, a bioplas- tic based on Avantium’s YXY technology. The goal of the collaborations is to bring 100% biobased PEF bottles to the market by 2016. Alpla will develop PEF bottles for personal care and home care applications, such as cos- metics and detergents, and for food applications such as sauces, dressings, baby foods and edible oils. The two companies also announced their intention to work on the development of bottles for beer and other alcoholic beverages. Avantium is cur- rently supplying its devel- opment partners with PEF manufactured from material produced at its Geleen pilot plant. Avantium is planning a 50,000t commercial plant, which is projected to be operational in 2016. The YXY technology and further details of PEF were described in detail on p11 of PETplanet Insider issue 6/2012. www.buhlergroup.com No more Fear DAK Americas LLC (DAK) has announced that it will be closing all its operations at its Cape Fear Site, near Wilmington, North Carolina. The closure is expected to be completed by September 2013. The site was built in the late 1960’s and acquired by DAK Americas in 2001. Approximately 600 staff are employed on the site in the production of PTA, PET resins and polyester staple fibres. DAK says that it will supply the majority of its current Cape Fear customers from other North American facilities. www.dakamericas.com