Dow buys stake in Rotterdam-based chemical recycling firm, Xycle

American chemicals firm, Dow, is investing in Xycle, a Rotterdam-based chemical recycling specialist, alongside investors like ING, Invest-NL, Polestar Capital and Vopak.

The collective funds, comprising both equity investments and senior debt, will support the construction of Xycle’s first commercial-scale advanced recycling plant, located in the Port of Rotterdam. The facility is expected to be fully operational by Q4 2026, with a projected plastic waste processing capacity of 21 kilotons annually (kta).

Dow will be an off-taker of the circular feedstock produced and will utilise it to manufacture new circular plastics.

Xycle’s advanced recycling technology uses low-temperature pyrolysis to efficiently break down difficult-to-recycle plastic waste into pyrolysis oil, increasing the liquid fraction available for use as cracker feedstock in new plastic production. This circular feedstock can be used to manufacture virgin-quality plastics for high-value applications, such as food-grade packaging, medical and automotive components.

“The performance and efficiency of Xycle’s technology strongly complements our increasingly diverse global portfolio of recycling solutions. We believe that the robust financial backing and credibility of our consortium partners demonstrates the strength of the opportunity at hand to scale advanced recycling technologies,” commented Ms. Stephanie Kalil, Commercial Vice President, Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics EMEA.

According to Dow, the modular layout of Xycle’s facilities allows production to scale up or down depending on demand, ensuring both flexibility and efficiency in operations. In the future, Xycle plans to develop more advanced recycling facilities globally, utilising larger reactor sizes to increase single plant capacity to 100-kta.

Mr. Arnd Thomas, CEO, Xycle Holding commented, “Dow’s investment – alongside our other partners - in Xycle’s first commercial facility marks a significant step in developing and expanding our innovative pyrolysis-based technology, which has been shown to deliver best-in-class yield for cracker feedstock”