Engineered circular resins meet demanding applications

International Plastics News for Asia had the chance to meet and discuss with Jeffrey Yau, Commercial Director, Plastic Recycling at Veolia Asia about  PlastiLoop operations and how it has been meeting the various needs of industries in the dynamic Asian region. 

Mr. Jeffrey Yau, Commercial Director, Plastic Recycling, Veolia Asia

What is the main focus of Veolia PlastiLoop operations? What are its main products and services?

Mr. Yau: As part of the Veolia Group’s commitment to driving ecological transformation, we position ourselves as the pioneer in sustainable resource management. Through our complementary business activities and the GreenUp Strategic Program, we dedicate our efforts to enhancing access to resources, optimising the use of existing resources, and renewing them through circular solutions.

A key initiative under this vision is PlastiLoop, Veolia's global offering focused on regenerating plastic resources and providing high-quality recycled plastics as an environmentally-friendly alternative to virgin materials. With full traceability throughout the value chain, PlastiLoop leverages Veolia's extensive network of 37 recycling facilities worldwide to produce a diverse range of post-consumer recycled (PCR) polymer grades, enabling brands to increase recycled content while meeting stringent quality and regulatory standards. PlastiLoop aims to minimise the environmental impacts associated with plastic production and waste by promoting a circular economy approach.

PlastiLoop offers a diverse portfolio of recycled plastic resins tailored for various industrial applications. These include recycled polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These sustainable materials can be utilised across sectors such as packaging, automotive, construction, textiles, appliances, industrial manufacturing, logistics, and agriculture, enabling companies to transition towards more circular and eco-friendly practices.

Diverse range of high-quality resins, pellets, and flakes available from PlastiLoop, designed to meet all manufacturing needs.

What are the types of recycled polymers that the company offers and what are their specific applications? 

Mr. Yau: At PlastiLoop, we provide a comprehensive range of high-quality circular polymer resins tailored to meet the diverse needs of customers across 7 major sectors - packaging, automotive, textiles, building & construction, home appliances, industrial & logistics, and agriculture.

Our structured product portfolio includes over 90 grades organised into 33 series, each series addressing the potential applications and end-use requirements within a particular industry.

The key recycled plastic resins we offer include: PET, HDPE, LDPE, PP, PS, ABS, and PC. We also supply customised polymer blends and compounds engineered to meet our clients' exact technical specifications, regulatory requirements, and application needs across sectors.

Our unique expertise allows us to formulate these recycled resins with specialised additives, fillers, and reinforcements as required to achieve properties on par with virgin materials while maximising recycled content.

The sorting line at PlastiLoop Indonesia features advanced machinery and skilled workers who ensure that different types of plastics are sorted based on their composition and color.

What are the special properties of the recycled resins from Veolia and how would you differentiate these from those available in the market today?

Mr. Yau: Leveraging over 30 years of experience and a network of nearly 40 recycling facilities across 14 countries, we have developed an extensive portfolio of over 90 unique recycled resin grades tailored to address the stringent specifications of our 300+ industrial clients worldwide. Our structured product range is the most comprehensive circular polymer offering globally.

A key differentiator is our ability to engineer recycled resins with guaranteed properties on par with virgin materials for even the most demanding applications. We leverage specialised formulations, additives, and reinforcements to achieve the desired mechanical, thermal, chemical resistance, and processing characteristics our customers require. Crucially, our circular polymers enable significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and resource consumption compared to virgin alternatives. Integrating high recycled content supports our customers in achieving their sustainability goals and reducing environmental impacts.

Beyond our diverse product offerings, PlastiLoop aims to collaborate as a strategic partner in structuring localised, sustainable value chains with our customers. We offer flexible business models to integrate recycled polymers based on each market's dynamics, requirements, and sustainability commitments - mitigating exposure to oil price volatility.

Our goal is to provide innovative circular solutions for every plastic application by leveraging our global recycling capabilities and tailored material science expertise.

Veolia has established a Circular PET plant in Japan, partnering with Japanese corporations Mitsui & Co., Ltd. and Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd.

Do you have a production facility in Asia? Can you provide a brief overview of your company operations in Asia?

Mr. Yau: Yes, PlastiLoop has an extensive operational footprint in Asia with multiple innovative recycling facilities strategically located across major markets in the region.

In China, our joint venture Veolia Huafei Group specialises in post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic production. This facility leverages advanced European recycling technologies to produce high-quality 100% PCR resins like PET, PP, HDPE and other engineering plastics recognised by brand owners. These materials are widely used in applications such as filaments, packaging, automotive, electronics and consumer goods.

Indonesia is home to our partnership with Danone Aqua, operating the country's largest PET bottle recycling plant in Pasuruan. Using innovative technology, this facility recycles and processes over 1 billion PET bottles annually into 25,000 tonnes of food-grade pellets, creating a closed-loop system. It provides 225 local jobs while ensuring Danone meets its 2025 recycled content targets.

Japan is a key recycling hub where Veolia operates three plants. Our Japanese facilities recycle post-consumer and industrial plastic waste into ready-to-use secondary materials for customers. Highlights include the Circular PET Tsuyama plant producing 25,000 tonnes of food-grade PET annually.

In South Korea, PlastiLoop focuses on PP recycling across facilities like Doksan/DSPL, which specialise in pelletizing and compounding recycled PP resins. We also operate the world's first eco-friendly pyrolysis plant for waste artificial marble recycling at R&E.

Across this Asian network, we apply cutting-edge recycling technologies, leverage decades of expertise, create local circular value chains, and produce high-quality recycled resins tailored to customer needs - all while providing employment opportunities that benefit local communities.

Do you have any plans to expand further in Asia? Please discuss.

Our expansion strategy is driven by our client's needs and our commitment to promoting a circular economy. While we're open to further growth in Asia or elsewhere, any expansion will be contingent on strong client commitment and alignment with our sustainability goals. We're prepared to support our clients wherever their circular economy initiatives take them, whether within our current footprint or in new geographies.

For more information, contact:

Veolia Asia

E-mail: plastiloop.support.team@veolia.com

Website: https://www.plastiloop.veolia.com/