BioBTX, a Dutch circular chemistry technology developer, has announced plans to move forward with construction of a commercial-scale plant in Delfzijl, the Netherlands, that will convert mixed plastic waste into aromatic chemicals. The facility will use BioBTX’s proprietary Integrated Catalytic Cracking Process, or ICCP, technology to convert mixed plastic waste through catalytic pyrolysis into aromatic oil consisting of benzene, toluene and xylenes, commonly known as BTX.

The plant is expected to process approximately 20,000 tonnes of waste annually while producing around 10,000 tonnes of renewable aromatic oil and 8,000 tonnes of sustainable by-products. Compared with conventional fossil-based BTX production, the process is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with the resulting chemical building blocks by 70 to 80%.

BioBTX ICCP pyrolysis technology demoplant | Industrial Sustainability Monthly

The current demoplant of BioBTX’s ICCP pyrolysis technology. © BioBTX

BTX chemicals are used in coatings, pharmaceuticals, performance materials and other industrial applications. They can also be used in the production of MDI and TDI isocyanates for polyurethane foams used in applications including mattresses and refrigerator insulation. The plant will be built at Chemical Park Delfzijl on the northern coast of the Netherlands and is expected to create approximately 35 new jobs. Covestro has been a shareholder and strategic partner of BioBTX since 2024, with a mid-single-digit million Euro stake in the company.

“We’ve followed BioBTX’s progress for years and are very happy to now see the point where the technology proves itself at industrial scale,” said Dr. Thorsten Dreier, Chief Technology Officer at Covestro. “This marks a very important step. Moreover, it processes mixed plastic waste instead of a single sorted stream, which is exactly the kind of recycling we need more of at scale to make a circular economy become reality.”

The commercial project follows a 14-year development period that began in 2012 and progressed from laboratory and pilot-scale work to commercial execution. While the first commercial plant will focus on mixed plastic waste, the ICCP technology is feedstock-flexible and has the potential to expand to other sources, including biomass.

“Reaching this key milestone in the development of BioBTX marks an important step in our journey towards our mission of making circular chemistry possible. I am very proud of the full BioBTX team and shareholders whose dedication and commitment has made this achievement possible. We are going to build our world’s first fully sustainable aromatic plant. A great accomplishment!” said Ton Vries, Co-founder and CEO of BioBTX.

About BioBTX

BioBTX is a Netherlands-based circular chemistry technology developer focused on producing renewable aromatic chemicals from waste and other non-fossil feedstocks. Its proprietary ICCP technology converts mixed waste streams into benzene, toluene and xylenes for use as chemical industry building blocks. For more information, please click here.

About Covestro

Covestro manufactures polymer materials and components for global markets including mobility, building and living, electrical and electronics, sports and leisure, telecommunications, health and the chemical industry. The company operated 46 production sites worldwide and generated EUR 12.9 billion in sales in 2025. Covestro is focused on the circular economy and has established climate-neutrality targets for its Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions. To learn more, please click here.

Source: Covestro

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Molly Bakewell Chamberlin
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