Netherlands-headed Corbion, a global market major in lactic acid, lactic acid derivatives, emulsifiers, functional enzyme blends, minerals and vitamins has recently held a ground-breaking ceremony in Rayong, Thailand. Officiated by Thai and Dutch dignitaries, the event marked the official start of construction of a new 75 000 tonnes per annum biobased Poly Lactic Acid (PLA) bioplastics polymerization plant at the existing Corbion lactic acid site in Rayong, Thailand.
bio-based poly-lactic acid (PLA) plant that is being built in Rayong, Thailand. Corbion’s CEO Tjerk
de Ruiter (left) and Dr Atchaka Sibunruang, Thai Minister of Industry offering fruits and flowers
to the spirits (photo courtesy Corbion).
Thai Minister of Industry, Dr Atchaka Sibunruang presided over the ritual and spiritual ceremony of the ground-breaking event that took place on November 9, 2016. Also present were the Governor of Rayong, the Deputy Secretary General of the Thai Board of Investment (BOI) while the Netherlands was officially represented by the Deputy Ambassador, Guillaume Teerling.
The new 75 000 tonnes per annum bio-based poly-lactic acid (PLA) plant will be constructed using Corbion’s and Sulzer’s proprietary polymerization technology, and key equipment will be supplied by Switzerland-headed Sulzer Chemtech Ltd.
At Corbion, we believe in building a great future for the people of today and generations to come. that’s what we do here in Thailand with the construction of this plant, biobased and biodegradable plastics will certainly help to minimize adverse impacts on human health and the environment. We are now entering the next stage of construction, and we are confident that our world-class facility will deliver the innovative solutions that our customers are seeking, said Tjerk de Ruiter, CEO, Corbion.
Lactic acid expansion
The Minister of Industry and Corbion have a long-standing relationship given that Dr Atchaka Sibunruang was already involved in the building of the lactic acid plant in 2004 in her role as Senior Executive Investment Advisor at the Office of the BOI. She reinforced the significance of this development for Thailand in the field of sustainable solutions.
In addition to the construction of this new PLA polymerization plant, Corbion will expand its existing lactide plant in Thailand by 25 000 tonnes per annum. With this expansion, Corbion will be able to serve its current and future lactide customers. The lactide expansion will also enable the production of a wider range of lactides than is currently possible.
The targeted start-up date for the PLA polymerization plant and the lactide expansion is in the second half of 2018.
