Half of world’s bio-based chems to be produced in Brazil by 2020

15 March 2012 18:28  [Source: ICIS news]

PRAIA DO FORTE, BRAZIL (ICIS)--Half of the global production of bio-based chemicals will take place in Brazil by 2020, an executive at US-based chemical company Eastman said on Thursday.

“By 2020, green chemicals will be 10% of the volume of all chemical products, and 50% of this will be produced in Brazil,” said Pedro Fortes, operations director at Eastman Brazil.

Fortes spoke at the 6th EBDQUIM conference hosted by Associquim/Sincoquim (Brazilian Association of Chemical and Petrochemical Distributors).

The executive highlighted Brazil’s strength in the production of bio-based chemical feedstocks sugarcane and wood pulp, as well as a growing opportunity to raise the production of vegetable oils.

Eastman will seek to apply newly acquired technology to produce bio-butanol for its Scandiflex plasticizers business in Brazil.

Eastman bought Brazil-based Scandiflex on 1 September 2011. The company had annual sales of around $54m (€42m) in 2010.

On 2 November, 2011, Eastman acquired US renewable chemicals firm TetraVitae Bioscience, which is developing bio-butanol and bio-acetone.

The company plans to eventually use bio-butanol produced from its TetraVitae technology as a feedstock for Scandiflex plasticizers in Brazil, noted Fortes.

“We will seek to use renewable resources to produce differentiated, sustainable products,” he said.

($1 = €0.77)

By: Joseph Chang
+1 713 525 2653

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