Biofeedstocks supplier Corbion Puriac will build a polylactic acid (PLA) plant in Thailand if it receives a sales commitment from customers.
The firm — based in Gorinchem, the Netherlands — will build the plant if it secures commitments for one-third of the plant's 165 million pound annual capacity, officials said in an Oct. 31 news release.
The cost of the new plant would be around $75 million. Corbion Puriac already supplies lactic acid to bioplastics makers who then polymerize it into PLA. Those sales will continue, officials said.
“As part of our strategic review we confirmed there is an attractive demand outlook for PLA, albeit at a lower growth pace than previously assumed,” CEO Tjerk de Ruiter said in the release.
Company officials added that global PLA capacity is almost sold out, and annual global demand for the material is expected to reach 1.3 billion pounds by 2025.
Corbion Puriac's PLA partners include Supla Co. Ltd. of Taiwan, Zhejiang Hisun Chemical Co. Ltd. of China and German compounders Biotec GmbH and FKuR Kunststoff GmbH.