Italy-headed industrial group MARIE S.p.A (MARIE Group) has announced that its Group subsidiary NextChem, through its subsidiary MyRemono, has signed a Toll Manufacturing Agreement with Germany-headed methacrylate products major Röhm GmbH under which Röhm will supply poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA) scrap material to be processed and chemically transformed by MyRemono into ultra-pure monomers with virgin-like quality.
Röhm is a leading manufacturer in the methacrylate business and producer of PMMA products sold under the “PLEXIGLAS” and “PLEXIMID” trademarks on the European, Asian, African, and Australian continents and under the “ACRYLITE” and “ACRYMID” trademarks in the Americas.
This initiative leverages NextChem’s proprietary NXRe technology, an advanced and efficient molten metal depolymerization process for the continuous chemical recycling of PMMA.
Europe-wide alliance
Röhm will also act as the off-taker of recycled methyl methacrylate (rMMA) monomer, to be reused for the manufacturing of new PMMA products in a fully circular process.
The agreement provides for a processing fee to be paid by Röhm to MyRemono.
The initiative follows the establishment of a Europe-wide circularity network for the recycling of PMMA, which includes the companies MyRemono, Röhm, Pekutherm, and Polyvantis.
Pekutherm will manage the logistics and sorting of PMMA materials, while Polyvantis will handle the mechanical recycling.
First-of-its-kind facility
MyRemono will manage the chemical recycling of PMMA scrap material at its first-of-its-kind industrial-scale plant, currently being developed in Italy, with the support of the EU Innovation Fund.
The plant is expected to be completed in 2026 with an initial processing capacity of about 5,000 tonnes per year of PMMA, an amount needed to produce approximately 10 million car taillights, demonstrating how significant volumes of recycled material can replace virgin resources in manufacturing.
Compared to the current virgin MMA production routes, the recycled MMA produced via the NXRe PMMA technology is expected to feature a carbon footprint reduction of more than 90 percent.
MyRemono’s overall investment for the technology development and scale-up, as well as for the construction of the first industrial-scale plant, amounts to EUR 15 million, mainly funded by a bank loan and the EUR 4 million EU Innovation Fund grant.
With this agreement, NextChem sets the base for the licensing of its NXRe PMMA technology, a key milestone for the future development of chemical depolymerization of other value-added materials, such as polystyrene and polyolefins.
Our NXRe PMMA technology will play a key role in advancing circularity, serving as one of the core pillars of our value proposition for circular solutions and sustainable materials. The implementation of this world-first advanced recycling plant and the creation of this industrial consortium is a clear example of the relevance and validity of how disruptive technologies respond to current challenges, commented Alessandro Bernini, CEO at MARIE.
