Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, a global sustainable chemical company, has made a significant announcement today. Since February 2011, the company has successfully recycled an incredible 100 billion post-consumer PET bottles, demonstrating its dedication to promoting a circular economy for PET. This monumental achievement has resulted in diverting a staggering 2.1 million tons of waste from the environment and saving 2.9 million tons of carbon footprint from the product lifecycles.
Indorama Ventures has shown a tremendous commitment to waste collection and recycling efforts. Over the past decade, the company has invested more than $1 billion in collecting used PET bottles. This investment not only emphasizes the economic value of recycling post-consumer PET bottles but also drives improvements in waste collection systems, leading to a cleaner environment.
Mr Aloke Lohia, the Founder and Group CEO of Indorama Ventures, expressed his gratitude towards consumers for recycling and global brand owners for utilizing recyclable and recycled packaging. He also highlighted the importance of increasing collection rates and urged everyone to do more in addressing the waste challenge. In March 2020, the company celebrated the milestone of 50 billion PET bottles recycled in just nine years, and today, they have achieved the remarkable feat of recycling 100 billion bottles in three and a half years.
The process of recycling post-consumer PET bottles into new bottles not only benefits the environment but also gives waste an economic value. This economic value helps drive improvements in waste collection systems, encouraging less waste and leading to a cleaner environment. Indorama Ventures vows to maintain its focus on circularity and continue investing in waste collection systems for used PET bottles.
Furthermore, the company has committed an additional $1.5 billion to expand its recycling business. This investment will enable Indorama Ventures to expand its recycling facilities, infrastructure, and public education programs. The company recognizes that PET is the most recycled plastic in the world due to its full recyclability and widespread collection practice. As the world’s largest producer of recycled resin used in plastic beverage bottles, Indorama Ventures is dedicated to supporting increased recycling rates globally and reducing lifecycle carbon emissions.
Currently, the company operates 20 recycling sites across Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Recent expansions include doubling the capacity of a recycling site in Brazil and the opening of PETValue, the largest bottle-to-bottle recycling facility in the Philippines, in collaboration with Coca-Cola. These expansions are part of a $300 million ‘Blue Loan’ that Indorama Ventures received in 2020 from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Asian Development Bank. The loan aims to enhance recycling capacity and divert plastic waste from landfills and oceans in countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, and Brazil, which require support in managing environmental waste.
Indorama Ventures has also partnered with the Yunus Foundation, a prominent nonprofit organization advocating sustainable development, to educate one million consumers worldwide about recycling by 2030. With 200,000 individuals already reached, this partnership seeks to raise awareness and promote sustainable practices.
Mr Lohia emphasized the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability and its determination to establish a truly circular economy for PET packaging. He highlighted that each recycled bottle represents a reduction in waste and brings us closer to a world where no packaging becomes litter or waste. This milestone achievement showcases the positive change that can be achieved when collective efforts are made to support PET recycling and strive for a more circular world. The dedication and achievements of Indorama Ventures serve as an inspiration for other organizations and individuals to prioritize sustainability and contribute to a greener future.
