Renewable chemical company Avantium reveals 2021 results

Avantium, a chemical technology company dedicated to developing technologies for the production of chemicals from renewable sources, has reported its 2021 half year results.

“We have made significant commercial progress across our business over the last six months”, said Tom van Aken, Chief Executive Officer of Avantium. “We have expanded our expertise in all key areas of our business and advanced the commercialisation of our Ray Technology. The new appointments we have made in our Renewable Polymers business unit and to our Supervisory Board increase the strength of our senior management and will help support our efforts to achieve success in commercialising our technologies.”

Tom van Aken recently spoke with Sustainability about how a net-zero chemical industry was possible. 

Key business developments for Avantium 

Avantium Renewable Polymers continues to work towards making a Final Investment Decision (FID) concerning the potential construction of the planned FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid) flagship plant:

• Negotiations with banks and other parties continue around the flagship plant funding
• Avantium and a European feedstock provider have reached an agreement on the terms of a strategic supply contract of high fructose syrup feedstock
• Bas Blom has been appointed as Managing Director of Avantium Renewable Polymers

Progress in sustainable Ray Technology

Ray Technology converts plant-based sugars into Ray plantMEG. This is a building block for PET or PEF resin for:

• Bottles and packaging
• Fibers for apparel, furniture and automotive
• Solvents (e.g. paint and coatings) and coolants

Avantium is scaling up its Ray Technology and the demonstration plant in Delfzijl, the Netherlands, successfully completed start-up and commissioning in 2020.

Avantium Renewable Chemistries made continued progress towards commercialisation with its Ray Technology:

• Avantium and Cosun Beet Company announced the ambition to jointly construct and operate the first commercial plant for the production of plantME (mono-ethylene glycol) and plantMPG (mono-propylene glycol)
• Successful production of PEF (polyethylene furanoate) and PET polyesters with plantMEG from the Ray Technology demonstration plant
• Avantium Catalysis recorded revenues of €4.3 million in the first half of 2021 (HY 2020: €4.0 million), with continued impact from COVID-19 travel restrictions.