SK Geo Centric invests 63 billion KRW in North American plastic waste recycling company

Secures 10% Stake in Loop Industry
Obtains Exclusive Rights for Production and Sales of Recycled PET in Asia Region

President Na Kyung-soo of SK General Chemical (right) and Daniel Solomita, CEO of North American Loop Industries, are signing a strategic investment agreement and posing for a commemorative photo. [Photo by SK General Chemical]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] SK Geo Centric announced on the 23rd that it has invested a total of 56.5 million USD (approximately 63 billion KRW) in Canadian company Loop Industries (hereinafter Loop), which possesses plastic waste recycling technology, securing a 10% stake.

Through this investment, SK Geo Centric has acquired depolymerization technology that can chemically decompose and recycle plastic waste, and gained exclusive rights to produce and sell recycled PET (r-PET) in the Asian region using this technology.

Loop, a Nasdaq-listed company holding patents for depolymerization technology, plans to begin constructing recycled PET production plants in Canada and Europe starting next year.

The depolymerization technology owned by Loop chemically decomposes contaminated PET bottles and polyester waste fibers, which previously had to be incinerated, at low temperatures, converting them back into pure basic plastic raw materials that can be recycled to the same quality as new products.

SK Geo Centric and Loop have agreed to establish recycled PET production facilities in the Asian region. The two companies plan to start building a plant capable of processing 84,000 tons of waste PET annually in Korea by 2023 through the establishment of a joint venture next year. They also aim to build a total of four recycled PET production facilities in Korea and other parts of Asia by 2030.

Daniel Solomita, CEO of Loop, said, "Through the commercialization of depolymerization technology, we will work together to achieve a high recycling rate for global plastic waste."

Na Kyung-soo, President of SK Geo Centric, emphasized, "With this investment, we have secured differentiated recycled plastic manufacturing technology and laid the foundation for establishing an eco-friendly plastic circulation system in the Asian region. We will expand cooperation with global plastic recycling specialists to lead the solution to the global plastic waste problem."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.