CPNL participates in innovation mission to China
CPNL, at the initiative of ChemistryNL, joined a mission to China aimed at promoting the circular economy and knowledge transfer within the plastics industry. This mission, an initiative of Chemistry NL, organized by the Netherlands Innovation Network China, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency and ChemistryNL, took place with the support of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Climate and Green Growth, and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. With the aim of exploring opportunities for cooperation in the field of circular plastics (and green/biobased chemistry and CCU) and.
The mission began in Shanghai, where the delegation of 29 participants, consisting of representatives from Dutch companies, knowledge institutions, government and industrymet visits to the regions of the Yangtze River Delta, the Greater Bay Area and Beijing.
During the mission, the delegation visited the Pujiang Innovation Forum (PJIF), where they participated in the "NL - China Green Chemistry & Circular Plastics" seminar. This event focused on research and industry developments, as well as cooperation opportunities.
The delegation also had the opportunity to gain hands-on experience during several site visits. They started with a visit to the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park (SCIP), a major petrochemical hub where they learned more about its infrastructure and innovations. This was followed later by a visit to the BASF Innovation Campus Shanghai, where delegation members gained insight into the latest R&D initiatives in sustainable products and processes.
A visit to the Shanghai Institute of Cleantech Innovation (ICTI) gave the delegation an in-depth look at laboratories focused on plastics recycling and biobased chemistry. The delegation split into groups to explore specific projects, including the capabilities of Jiaren New Materials, a recycling company that produces polyester, and Bluepha, which focuses on developing 100% biodegradable materials.
In the Greater Bay Area, the delegation visited Kingfa Sci.&Tech. Co., Ltd. a leading company in the modification of plastics. Here a lively discussion took place on the future of the plastics industry and possible collaborations. At the same time, members had the opportunity to visit DataBeyond a manufacturer of waste sorting equipment that uses more advanced AI technology and later see it in practice at one of their customers.
The delegation also traveled to Huizhou, where they visited the Daya Bay Petrochemical Complex, one of the most important petrochemical hubs in China. Here the delegation learned about the initiatives of Shell, ExxonMobil and other companies to explore the feasibility of a new CCU hub. Some of the delegation also visited Kingfa te's Zhuhai plant.
This mission was not only an opportunity to explore advances in plastics, but also to build strong networks between Dutch and Chinese companies and institutions. CPNL along with the other participants and their networks look forward to implementing the knowledge and experiences gained into their own business operations and cooperation initiatives.
"The visit to DataBeyond was impressive. What struck me the most was how this young and dynamic Chinese company, with capital investment from the market, has grown in a short period of time to become a leader in the Asian market in AI-driven sorting technology for plastics. At a DataBeyond customer, deep in the hinterland, we saw bales of pre-sorted plastic ready for further processing in recycling plants. This skips the manual sorting stage. Although the speed and scale of the activities are well known, what struck me most was the focused approach. Companies and government work closely together, supported by scientific research, to develop regional solutions. This leads to rapid progress, but also looking ahead to the long-term goals of being climate neutral by 2060. In the short term, there is a maximum CO2 acceptance until 2030, and applying recyclate in food packaging is not (yet) allowed." - Marc Spekreijse, CPNL
