Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz and NRW Minister-President Hendrik Wüst attended the laying of the foundation stone for LyondellBasell's first chemical recycling plant.
 

Chancellor Scholz travelled to Wesseling in North Rhine-Westphalia to attend the laying of the foundation stone for the company's chemical recycling plant, as did Minister President Hendrick Wüst. In his speech, Scholz emphasised that the plant was a major step in the right direction and that, in his view, Germany has a bright future as a chemical industry location and can count on the support of the German government. In terms of turnover, LyondellBasell is the third-largest chemical company in the world, the German government said in a statement. With more than 1,400 employees, including around 150 trainees, the 2.7 square kilometre plant in Wesseling is an important production site and innovation centre. Together with the neighbouring site in Knapsack, it is the largest LyondellBasell site in Europe. LyondellBasell's new plant in Wesseling will be able to recycle up to 50,000 tonnes of household plastics per year. From 2026, post-consumer plastic waste that was previously difficult to recycle, such as multi-layer food packaging or mixed plastic containers, will be processed there in a chemical recycling process based on the company's proprietary ‘MoReTec’ technology. According to LyondellBasell, the investment is intended in particular to help tackle the challenges posed by plastic waste and promote the circular economy. NRW Minister of Economic Affairs Mona Neubaur and Peter Vanacker, CEO of LyondellBasell, were also present at the meeting. According to the information provided, the NRW state government wants to establish North Rhine-Westphalia as a leading location for innovative recycling technologies.
 
Sources:

• Federal government press release (19.9.2024)
• LyondellBasell press release (19.9.2024)
• Photo: © Federal Government / Guido Bergmann