Two big news in the bio-based chemicals sector were announced this month: A planned 65 ktpa fermentation-based 1,4-butanediol (BDO) capacity in Iowa, USA, to be built by a newly-formed joint venture called Qore, and a 75 ktpa polylactic acid (PLA) plant announced by NatureWorks to be built in Nakhon Sawan province in Thailand.
Qore is a joint venture formed by US agribusiness firm Cargill and Europe-based specialty chemicals distributor Helm. Qore has licensed the fermentation-based BDO process from Genomatica (GENO BDO process) along with a complete process design package and technology services. In exchange, Genomatica will receive license fees and royalties. This will be the second licensed GENO BDO process in commercial-scale production, which is expected to start in 2024. Novamont is currently running the GENO BDO process in Bottrighe, Italy, with a capacity of ~30 ktpa.
BASF, one of the largest producer of petro-BDO, has also licensed the GENO BDO process but is yet to announce any commercial-scale production plans. However, it is believed that the company has been producing in batch scale. According to BASF’s website, their renewable BDO is being sold in package up to 1,000 kg (composite intermediate bulk containers).
Back to Qore, the company’s bio-BDO will be marketed under the QIRA™ brand.
NatureWorks, meanwhile, has finally been able to get approval from the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) to construct a 75 ktpa Ingeo biopolymer production facility that will include production for lactic acid and lactide, enabling a fully integrated PLA site. NatureWorks will build and operate all three facilities, having both process and energy integration to increase the efficiency of the manufacturing operation.
NatureWorks recently completed the front-end engineering design work with Jacobs. Final detailed engineering is currently underway, and NatureWorks expects to announce further details on the new facility later this year. NatureWorks is also currently expanding the company’s Ingeo production in its Blair, Nebraska, PLA facility.
More on my report about this news, the current BDO and the PLA markets were published last Friday in Tecnon OrbiChem’s Bio-Materials newsletter.
