Avantium, a leading technology company in sustainable chemistry, has signed a letter of intent to establish its new flagship plant at Chemie Park Delfzijl.
The 5-kiloton plant will produce FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid) - a key building block for many chemicals and plastics such as PEF (polyethylene furanoate). Avantium Renewable Polymers has also entered into a letter of intent with a Regional Consortium regarding the financing of the FDCA plant and related costs, amounting to €30 million, over the period until the plant's completion in 2023.
Important step
Avantium and the Regional Consortium - consisting of the province of Groningen, Groningen Seaports, NOM (Agency for Investment and Development in the Northern Netherlands), FondsNieuweDoen, Investeringsfonds Groningen and Groeifonds - believe that the new plant will be an important step in the transition of the chemical industry from fossil raw materials to sustainable raw materials. The new FDCA plant will be located near Avantium's demonstration plant for vegetable mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) and the pilot biorefinery for the production of glucose and lignin from non-food-intended biomass.
Ambition
"Avantium and Groningen share the ambition to support the transition to a circular economy," said Nienke Homan, deputy of the province of Groningen. "Avantium's plant brings innovation to the region. Also, the Avantium plant creates more than 60 highly skilled jobs and provides significant indirect employment opportunities. Avantium's decision to build the plant in Delfzijl is a testament to the strong green chemistry ecosystem the region offers." Cas König, CEO of Groningen Seaports: "Avantium fits perfectly into our Chemport Europe ecosystem where we work together on a shared ambition: changing the nature of chemistry. Chemport's goal is for the chemical industry cluster to be completely climate neutral by 2050."
Letter of intent
Members of the Regional Consortium and Avantium Renewable Polymers have drawn up a letter of intent regarding conditional funding of €30 million for the engineering and construction of the FDCA plant, working capital, start-up costs and operation of Avantium Renewable Polymers. The Regional Consortium financing is subject to customary conditions, including due diligence and completion of documentation, as well as formal decisions by Avantium on the construction of the plant and related capital expenditure. The final funding mix will be determined in the coming months, but is intended to include grants, equity and loans. Furthermore, the region is supporting Avantium in seeking additional grants and other financial instruments related to the expenditure required to start up the FDCA plant.
On track
"Groningen Seaports offers us an excellent location with the right infrastructure. The province of Groningen is at the forefront of green chemistry development and has an exceptional track record of investing in technologies for a sustainable future," said Tom van Aken, CEO of Avantium. "We are delighted to have taken another important step in Avantium Renewable Polymers' financing process for its FDCA flagship plant. Together with the PEFerence grant and Avantium's own investments, we are on track for financing the FDCA plant, which we aim to complete before the end of 2020. We are now focusing on progressing our discussions with potential strategic partners."
