PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2021

PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 06/21 www.petpla.net 39 TRADE SHOW REVIEW 39 TRADE SHOW REVIEW Icis 3 rd Recycling & Sustainability Conference by Gabriele Kosmehl The end of April saw the 3 rd edition of the Icis Recycling & Sustainability Conference. The three-day event which took place in a fully virtual environment focused on new data and developments for the whole polymers world. PETplanet picked some of the PET-related cherries for you. Global supply outlook for recycled polymers In her presentation, Helen McGeough, Icis Senior Analyst & Global Analyst Team Lead, Plastic Recycling highlighted the current state of availability of recycled polymers in relation to supply demand. With regula- tions spreading globally and across all regions, suf- ficient supply becomes an issue. Supplies of recycled PET, despite being highly positioned compared to other types of plastics, are no exception here. Some big brands in the beverage sector are begin- ning to sense this already as they go way beyond the minimum requirements with bottles featuring rPET contents of 50% or even 100%. Helen pointed out that these brands frequently cite the challenges in sourcing a sufficient supply of recycled materials, particularly of high-quality recycled polymers. To obtain enough high- quality material, the brands recognised that they have a role to play in collection, establishing facilities and commitments to collect more material. To support this, Helen shared data from Icis showing the global availability of virgin PET compared to rPET. These global capacities from 2020 showed a 10% share of rPET capacity in comparison to virgin PET. So in the context of mid- and long-term industry goals such as for instance the EU goal of 25% rPET share on average by 2025 for single-use bottles and 30% by 2030 for all bot- tles, a substantial growth in the supply of rPET is required as Helen vividly underpinned with figures: “If we were to achieve a 50% recycled content rate in PET globally, growth rates need to be 82% per annum in comparison to 2020. This is equivalent to an additional 1,800 recycling plants with an average of 25,000t capacity.” E N D L E S S I N N O V A T I O N S I N C E 1 9 1 9