NOVA Chemicals Corporation has made a significant expansion of its Circular Solutions business today by announcing an investment into developing its first mechanical recycling facility in Connersville, Ind. The facility will process post-consumer plastic films to produce the company’s SYNDIGO™ recycled polyethylene (rPE) at commercial scale as early as 2025, delivering over 100 million pounds of rPE to the market by 2026. NOVA Chemicals plans to expand its recycling footprint over the next several years to help it reach its industry-leading 2030 ambition of 30 per cent recycled content as a share of its total polyethylene sales.
The company recently announced its 2030 Roadmap to Sustainability Leadership aspirations, including its anticipated investment of between US$2-4 billion by 2030 to expand its sustainable product offerings, decarbonize its assets, and build a state-of-the-art mechanical recycling business while exploring new advanced recycling technologies.
“NOVA Chemicals continues to show clear leadership in reshaping plastics for a better, more sustainable world,” said NOVA Chemicals President and CEO, Roger Kearns. “We are committed to helping our customers achieve their recycled content goals through a variety of business models and we look forward to making more announcements like this as we work to enable a low-carbon, zero-plastic-waste future.”
The facility will employ approximately 125 people and be one of Connersville’s largest private employers. Connersville was strategically selected because of its access to abundant feedstock supply of post-consumer films from nearby metropolitan areas, and easy-to-access rail service for distributing SYNDIGO rPE to NOVA Chemicals’ customers. The facility will be operated by Novolex Holdings, LLC (“Novolex”) – a leading developer of packaging products for foodservice and industrial markets – leveraging its more than 15 years’ experience in operating plastic film recycling facilities. The collaboration will increase the speed with which NOVA Chemicals ramps up its supply of SYNDIGO rPE to the market.
“Novolex is proud to collaborate with NOVA Chemicals’ Circular Solutions and is excited by the opportunity to operate this state-of-the art recycling facility in the Hoosier state,” said Novolex Chairman and CEO, Stanley Bikulege. “Indiana has long been a hub for sustainability, innovation, and business. The new plant will build on our experience of operating both our North Vernon plastics recycling facility in Indiana and our recycling plant in Wisconsin as well as accelerate our commitment to support recycling and the circular economy.”
“We are excited to welcome NOVA Chemicals and Novolex to Indiana and our West Central community,” said Governor Eric J. Holcomb. “This investment is a testament to Indiana’s pro-growth business climate and our skilled Hoosier workforce, and we look forward to partnering with both companies to create new career opportunities and support the circular economy for years to come.”
“Plastic products play an essential role in our daily lives and will continue to be a valuable resource in establishing a lower-carbon and sustainable world. They are an invaluable resource for furthering the North American circular economy,” said Greg DeKunder, Vice President, NOVA Circular Solutions. “This project with Novolex and the State of Indiana is yet another example of how NOVA Chemicals is working to find collaborative ways to recapture the value of plastic materials and use them again and again.”
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About NOVA Chemicals Corporation
NOVA Chemicals aspires to be the leading sustainable polyethylene producer in North America. Our driving purpose is to reshape plastics for a better, more sustainable world by delivering innovative solutions that advance a circular economy. Through these efforts, we strive to make everyday life healthier and safer while acting as a catalyst for a low-carbon, zero-plastic-waste future. NOVA Chemicals sets itself apart by offering superior product quality, proprietary high-performance resins, recycled and recyclable polyethylene, value chain collaboration, and exceptional customer experience. These benefits enable customers to use our resins to create flexible and rigid products that serve a variety of end-use applications. Our employees work to ensure health, safety, security, and environmental stewardship through our commitment to Sustainability and Responsible Care®.
NOVA Chemicals, headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, has nearly 2,500 employees worldwide and is wholly owned by Mubadala Investment Company of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
About Novolex
Novolex develops and manufactures diverse packaging and food service products that touch nearly every aspect of daily life for multiple industries ranging from grocery, food packaging, restaurant and retail to medical applications and building supplies. The Novolex family of brands provides customers with innovative paper and plastic solutions for their business needs today while investing in research and development to engineer more sustainable choices for the future. With more than 10,000 employee families, Novolex operates 57 manufacturing plants in North America and Europe, including two world-class plastic flm recycling facilities.