Bioplastics maker Danimer Scientific is planning a $700 million investment to considerably expand its Bainbridge, Ga., polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production site.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp issued a statement March 29 announcing the expansion. The project will nearly quadruple Danimer's workforce in Decatur County.
Danimer has been headquartered in Bainbridge for more than a decade. It currently employs more than 100 people and is a leading producer of PHA, a renewable and sustainable family of biopolymers that it sells under the brand name Nodax.
Applications for Nodax PHA include additives, aqueous coatings, fibers, filaments, films, hot-melt adhesives and injection molded items. It is seeing increased demand from the makers of foodservice items such as plastic cutlery and straws as single-use plastics come under more scrutiny.
The expansion plans call for the construction of an additional 2 million square feet near Danimer's current 25-acre campus. The company will hire for technical positions and careers in production.
"Reducing the environmental impacts of plastic waste is one of the most critical issues facing the world today, so we are proud to welcome home a project that will play a key role in solving it," said Rick McCaskill, executive director of the Development Authority of Bainbridge and Decatur County. "We look forward to supporting Danimer Scientific in bringing this innovative technology from Decatur County to the rest of the world."
In 2020 Danimer Scientific went public through a merger with Live Oak Acquisition Corp. At the time, officials said the listing would help the company finance a new location with 125 million pounds of annual production capacity. At the time, the company had not decided where it would expand.