Neste, the Finnish chemical recycler, and Ravago, a Belgian supplier of plastic materials, have officially decided to halt their joint initiative to build a chemical recycling plant in Vlissingen, the Netherlands.

Source: SustainablePlastics

Initially announced in 2021, this project aimed to utilize pyrolysis technology to recycle around 55,000 tons of mixed plastic waste annually. The facility was to incorporate technology from the U.S.-based company Alterra Energy, in which both Neste and Ravago hold minority stakes.

However, despite the project's initial promise and the longstanding partnership between Neste and Ravago, dating back to 2019, the initiative will not move forward. According to Sustainable Plastics, the project did not achieve the necessary final investment decision (FID) readiness, leading to its cancellation. The inability to meet this crucial financial and planning milestone significantly influenced the decision to terminate the project.

Ambitious Goals and Future Endeavors

Originally, the Neste-Ravago collaboration aimed to chemically recycle over 200,000 tons of plastic waste each year. This ambition represented a meaningful step toward tackling the global plastic waste challenge through advanced recycling technologies. Although the Vlissingen project has been shelved, both companies continue to actively engage in plastic waste processing.

Neste, in particular, is focused on enhancing its recycling capabilities. In 2024, the company processed approximately 6,000 tons of liquefied plastic waste at its refinery in Porvoo, Finland. To further expand this capacity, Neste has announced a €111 million investment, aiming to scale up to 150,000 tons per year at the same facility. This expansion is part of Neste's broader sustainability strategy, which includes a long-term objective of processing over one million tons of plastic waste annually by 2030.

In addition to its activities in Finland, Neste has secured the European rights to Alterra Energy's liquefaction technology. However, no additional processing capacity has yet been established in the region using this technology.

Industry Challenges and Opportunities

While the cancellation of the Dutch project marks a setback for the Neste-Ravago partnership, it highlights the broader challenges facing chemical recycling at scale, including technological feasibility, economic viability, and regulatory complexity. Nonetheless, Neste's ongoing investments in alternative sites and commitment to increasing processing volumes demonstrate its relentless pursuit of innovation in plastic waste recycling.

As industry stakeholders look to advanced recycling to support circular economy goals, the experiences of Neste and Ravago reveal both the opportunities and challenges in making chemical recycling commercially viable and scalable throughout Europe and beyond.