Global bioplastics company expands plant in Rayong

Francois de Bie, marketing director for bioplastics at Corbion, said: “Thailand is a world leader in the production of cane sugar, and we know the Thai government is a strong supporter of the bio-economy in general. 
“The country is also strategically located in the Pacific area – with easy access to China, Japan, SEA [Southeast Asia] and also Europe. These factors combined make Thailand an ideal location for Corbion’s bioplastic activities.” 
Corbion has some 1,800 employees globally and annual sales revenue of $1 billion. The company has operations in more than 50 countries. 
“We opened the world’s largest lactic-acid plant in Rayong, Thailand, in 2010. In 2013 we added a 75,000-tonne-per-year lactide expansion to our lactic-acid factory. We are now planning to construct a 75,000-tonne-a-year PLA polymerisation plant, which will open in 2018. Our Rayong site will employ over 250 people in 2018,” de Bie said.
“The capacity of the plant will be 75,000 tonnes a year of PLA bioplastics. The total investment in this part of the plant will be around $100 million. The groundbreaking will take place on November 9 and the plant will become operational during the second half of 2018.”
De Bie said a significant amount of the company’s sales were in the Asia-Pacific area, including mainland China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. 
“We operate only one production plant in Asia-Pacific, which is the factory in Rayong, Thailand.”
He said PLA was a bioplastic polymer. It is made from sugar cane and therefore has a very low carbon footprint. PLA is also biodegradable, ensuring that at the end of its life it will not leave behind any toxic substances. 
PLA is used in a range of applications, including packaging, cups, plates and shopping bags. 
“The market for PLA is growing some 15-20 per cent per year, driven by consumers that want to have plastic products that are more sustainable than the oil-based plastics. PLA has a low carbon footprint and helps to reduce plastics pollution,” de Bie said.
“The factory will produce products that will be sold globally, including the USA, Europe and the Pacific. The factory will also deliver to the local Thai plastics industry that will produce bioplastic products for domestic use or products for export,” he said.
De Bie said the packaging market was one of the most important for bioplastics. Many companies and big brands want to make a good impression on their customers and on the environment in general. The packaging is the first thing a consumer sees of the product – and looking at the packaging a customer will decide if he or she wants to buy the product. 
“The packaging is often also the last thing a consumer sees of the product they purchased. |As more and more consumers do not want to create waste, |they are interested to see sustainable bioplastic packaging,” he said.