Lamor taking steps to solve the plastic waste problem – the ground-breaking ceremony of Kilpilahti chemical plastic recycling facility took place in Finland

Lamor Corporation Plc Press release 31 August 2023 at 3:00 PM EEST

Lamor is building a 10,000 metric ton plastic recycling facility in Porvoo, Finland. Its ground-breaking ceremony was held on Thursday, 31 August. Former Finnish minister for trade and development, MP Ville Skinnari, Lamor’s CEO Mika Pirneskoski, representatives of the Finnish Climate Fund, technology providers from Italy and Estonia, and end-product off-taker Shell addressed the importance of the initiative.

The site is ready for construction, which will commence in a fortnight. “Pre-treatment and thermochemical process technologies will be installed next spring, and the commissioning is estimated to take place in summer 2024”, tells Johan Grön, COO of Lamor. “First drops of our end product, oil produced from recycled plastics, will be delivered during the latter part of 2024.”

The liquid produced from plastic waste works like virgin oil in the production of new plastic. It is suitable for many purposes for which mechanically recycled plastic granules are not suitable: these are, for example, food packaging that requires perfect hygiene.

The product will be sold to Shell for further refining into a suitable raw material for plastics producers. The annual input capacity in Kilpilahti facility will be 10,000 metric tons in the first phase. The facility will be constructed and operated by Lamor Recycling Oy, a project company with Lamor’s partner Resiclo Oy.

“Shell is excited to start this cooperation with Lamor Recycling, the agreement supports our strategy to supply our customers with more circular chemicals,” says Phil Turley, General Manager Plastic Circularity Shell. “Our agreement with Lamor Recycling is another step in Shell’s drive to help the development of a viable plastic circular economy in Europe.”

“We are targeting a 100,000 metric tons portfolio for chemical recycling of waste plastics by the end of 2026, and the Kilpilahti facility will be our pilot and blueprint for the future”, says Mika Pirneskoski, CEO of Lamor. “The global plastics challenge is a massive one: out of the 8.3 billion tons of plastic that has so far been produced in the world, only 9% have ever been recycled. We are proud to be part of solving this challenge together with Shell and other partners, turning plastic waste into valuable raw material. The aim is to increase the share of recycled plastics and decrease the amount of plastic waste polluting the nature.”

The facility includes two main processes: first the plastic is shredded in pre-treatment and then combusted without oxygen in the thermochemical process. The liquid is processed and delivered for further refining to meet the plastics production requirements.

“TB Solutions and Promeco technologies which we have selected will ensure reliable, efficient and safe production to meet the end-product requirements”, tells Johan Grön. “We have a long experience in combining the best technologies in the field, for example in our diverse international waste treatment projects. For us, building a chemical recycling facility for plastics is an ambitious, yet logical next step towards a cleaner tomorrow.”

"We welcome the new facility to our KILKE material center in Kilpilahti. At Rosk'n Roll, we strive to create circular economy centers where it is easy for industry players to locate and invest in facilities that promote the industry," says Vesa Heikkonen, CEO of Rosk'n Roll Oy Ab, which leased the production site to Lamor Recycling.

”The initial phase to identify the right technology solution for this project had the highest priority. Now, we may proceed with full speed towards having our first facility in operation”, concludes Mika Pirneskoski.