Total Corbion PLA celebrates the opening of its PLA plant

Total Corbion PLA, a 50/50 joint venture between Total and Corbion, has celebrated its 75,000 tons per year PLA (Poly Lactic Acid) bioplastics plant in Rayong, Thailand.

The opening celebrates the start-up of the world’s second largest PLA plant, which enabled an increase in available production capacity for this versatile biopolymer by almost 50 per cent.

Being biobased and biodegradable and offering multiple environmentally-friendly end-of-life solutions, PLA bioplastics provide a valuable contribution towards the circular economy.

The new 75,000 tons per year facility produces a broad range of Luminy PLA resins from renewable, non-GMO sugarcane sourced locally in Thailand.

The Grand Opening ceremony, which took place on September 9th, 2019, was chaired by Ms. Duangjai Asawachintachit, Secretary General of the Thailand Board of Investment.

“This is a moment of great pride for me and the teams of Total Corbion PLA” said Stéphane Dion.

“In addition to its functionality attributes, PLA brings concrete solutions in terms of sustainability, and we are glad that our state-of-the-art plant is up and running to cater for the growing needs of the market.”

Marc den Hartog added: “The creation of sustainable growth with PLA bioplastics truly fits with our ambition to build new business platforms, applying disruptive technologies. PLA bioplastics will also drive further development and growth of Lactic Acid, which is at the centre of Corbion’s strategy to develop sustainable ingredient solutions to improve the quality of life for people today and for future generations.”

The plant has been operational since the end of 2018.