Recent developments
Recycled and safer polymers
Polyolefin circularity advanced as Borealis and Borouge launched Recleo. AGC secured the first UL2809 verification for PTFE made with recycled fluorite. Covestro and Allmed initiated kidney‑filter recycling trials. Indorama Ventures led ChemScore; Brenntag earned the German Sustainability Award.
Renewable fuels and gases
bp’s Archaea Energy expanded modular RNG builds with Worley. Topsoe’s Solid Oxide Electrolyzer Cell (SOEC) technology was chosen for a UK e‑SAF project. Low‑emission ammonia moved forward via Air Products and Yara negotiations, with Yara outlining U.S. capex and 2026–2030 execution.
Wind assets repowered
RWE repowered Spain’s Muel wind farm, achieving 99.82% material recovery under ZeroWaste certification. Germany’s Lasbek wind farm upgrade lifted output and began rotor‑blade reuse trials for motorway noise barriers, with other components kept as spares.
Lithium and geothermal
Toray Industries unveiled acid‑resistant nanofiltration achieving >95% lithium recovery from battery black mass. Vulcan Energy broke ground on a combined geothermal‑lithium plant in Landau, backed by a €250 million commitment from the European Investment Bank.
Bio-based and circular platforms
UPM’s biorefinery in Leuna neared first deliveries of renewable chemicals, and Nouryon’s innovation center in Brazil targets bio‑based chelates and biopolymers. Circular initiatives included HydroThane moving into plastic‑recycling projects and the Circlear cluster. Moeve and Mistral AI partnered on efficiency‑focused industrial assistants.
Corporate and compliance
ACES 2030 advanced as thyssenkrupp refined a financial‑holding model; Aurubis reported strong cash flow and proposed a dividend; Kemira executed a share repurchase. Monitoring near Umicore’s Hoboken site showed a slight rise in child blood lead. Repsol and Toyota Spain agreed on dealership decarbonization using renewables and electrification.