Shell Chemicals and petrochemical company Braskem have entered an agreement to bring bio-attributed and bio-circular polypropylene to the US market.

Shell will supply the feedstocks to allow Braskem to manufacture polypropylene for sustainable options to meet growing consumer demand in the packaging, film, automotive and consumer goods markets.

Shell is replacing hydrocarbon feedstock with a bio-attributed and bio-circular feedstock in its polypropylene product.

The independently certified materials are based on a mass balance approach. This is an independent accounting process widely used across the chemical industry.

Both companies aim to reduce their carbon emissions, with Shell’s target being to reduce absolute emissions by 50% by 2030 compared to 2016 levels on a net basis. The agreement is a step for them both towards achieving their sustainability goals.

Braskem North America vice-president of olefins and polyolefins Mark Nikolich commented: “Ultimately, we believe that these different renewable solutions are important steps forward as the plastics industry evolves to a more sustainable future. We will continue to develop and provide solutions to support our global clients in reaching their sustainability goals.”

In late 2023, Braskem was awarded a $600,000 grant from the Reducing Embodied Energy and Decreasing Emissions Institute for its recycling process technology to extract pure polypropylene from PCR.

With 40 industrial units in Brazil, the US, Mexico and Germany, Braskem exports its products to clients in more than 70 countries.