to prepare this type of feedstock exists in differ- ent states of development across the globe, and signifi - cant investment is needed to manage the problem of plas- tic waste effectively,” says Ron Venner, Chief Growth Officer, Lummus Technology. To meet circularity pledges, refiners and petrochemical operators must transition from batch to continuous co-processing of recycled plastics. Unfortunately, the current capacity of the plastic pyrolysis industry is low. Meeting the challenge Refining and petrochemical organisations are taking charge of the supply situation. Several global operating companies are developing licensed pyrolysis processes (see Table 1 ). Others are entering partnerships with technology providers to construct on-site or designated plastic recycling opera- tions (see Table 2 ). Several global energy and petrochemi- cal organisations are achieving sustainability initiatives, as discussed in the following sections. OMV is transitioning to become an integrated sustainable chemicals, fuels, and energy company, with a focus on cir- cular economy solutions (OMV currently holds 75% of the shares in Borealis AG.) OMV conducted R&D programmes at its Schwechat, Austria, refinery to chemically recycle waste plastics (Table 1). OMV’s proprietary chemical recycling process, ReOil, converts hard-to-recycle plastics that are not suitable for mechanical recycling. After purification and refining processing, the pyrolysis oil is seamlessly integrated into refinery processes. With more than 15 years of opera - tional experience, OMV has rigorously tested the ReOil Advantages Maximises valuable circular products Low CO footprint Gas separation exibility
Plastic pyrolysis (with gas recovery)
Inorganic chloride vapour
Gas product
Light PyOil
Steam cracker
Sorted plastics
Pyrolysis section
Melt section
Medium PyOil
Pyrolysis vapours
2 4
5
Pitch product
Heavy PyOil
Heavy PyOil to melt section
Figure 2 Recycling end-of-life plastics involves multiple processing operations to break long polymer chains into suitable refining and petrochemical feedstocks. Source: Lummus Technology
technology roadmap to reclaim hard-to-recycle polymers, such as polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polyvinyl chlo- ride (PVC), as sustainable feedstocks. PE (high-density pol- yethylene [HDPE] and low-density polyethylene [LDPE]) and PP are the polymers most widely used in single-prod- uct applications. Integrating recycled plastic into petrochemical and refining operations requires more than mechanical recy - cling and melting. Pyrolysis can resolve plastic recycling issues. Refiners, petrochemical producers, and technol - ogy licensors are researching more efficient methods to utilise pyrolysis products as circular alternatives to virgin feedstocks. Supply-side issues with circularity and recycling plastic Using waste plastic as sustainable refinery and petrochem - ical feedstocks is a recent development (see Figure 2 ). “The primary challenge with converting mixed plastic waste into fuels and circular chemicals lies in the upfront waste collection, sorting, and cleaning needed to pro- duce ‘reactor-ready’ feedstock. The infrastructure needed
Energy and petrochemical organisations are developing their pyrolysis solutions
Operating company and
Process features
Installations and projects
Process name OMV ReOil
• Handles hard-to-process, end-of-life plastic • Seamless integrated to existing refinery facilities • Operates at refinery pressures and temperatures • Certified sustainability to ISCC Plus • Catalytic pyrolysis operates at lower temperatures • 100% renewable power and electrically heated
• 16,000 tpy unit operating at the Schwechat,
Austria refinery
• 50,000 tpy MoReTec unit at Wesseling,
LyondellBasell Molecule Recycling Technology
Germany, site; start-up in 2026
• 100,000 tpy MoReTec unit at Houston, Texas,
(MoReTec)
systems lower GHG emissions
• Replacing virgin raw materials with recycled
refinery under evaluation
plastics reduces Scope 3 emissions
• Collaborating with Servizi di Ricerche e Sviluppo • Partnering with Technip Energies on purification of
• Start-up of 6,000 tpy pilot plant at Mantua
Versalis (Eni) Hoop
R&D centre in June 2025
• FID under evaluation to construct 40,000 tpy Hoop unit at the Versalis Priolo facility
pyrolysis oil for steam cracking operations.
Table 1
76
PTQ Q1 2026
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