Page 166 - CW E-Magazine (5-9-2023)

News from Abroad

ENSURING CIRCULARITY

Toray and partners expand fishing net recycling

programme in Japan

Japanese firms – Toray Industries,
Nitto Seimo and Maruha Nichiro’s subsi-
diary, Taiyo A&F – have announced
plans to broaden a programme launched
last November to contribute to a circu-
lar economy and help resolve the issue
of marine plastic by recycling materials
from fishing nets into new ones. The pro-
gramme will now additionally recover
materials from used nylon fishing nets.
rable to virgin material. Nitto Seimo is fishing nets, with Taiyo A&F testing
In a move touted as an “industry manufacturing nets with this fibre. Taiyo the results.
first”, the three companies will – in A&F’s offshore purse seine fishing
November this year – look to initiate vessel ‘Taiyo Maru No.21’ will deploy Mr. Mitsuo Ohya, President of
purse seine fishing trials with nets made them on a trial basis in the Northern Toray, commented, “This drive to de-
from recycled ones. Pacific Ocean in this November to velop nylon fibre-to-fibre recycling
broaden the scope of the programme. technology for fishing nets paves the
According to Toray, it is challeng- way for the entire textiles industry to
ing to reuse fibres in new nets. That is The three companies will confirm help materialise a circular economy
because the strength and durability of the commercial feasibility of these new by conserving and recycling resources
fibres deteriorate during spinning ow- fishing nets. They will draw on trial and reducing wastes across the supply
ing to debris and algae contamination results, verify materials scopes, ratios, chain.”
from immersion in the sea. The recyc- and other aspects of expanding their
ling programme launched last year was usage with a view to putting the new Mr. Hiroaki Kobayashi, President
accordingly limited to nylon scraps and nets on the market in December 2023. of Nitto Seimo, added, “This initiative
process waste from net production. will help eliminate waste and slash
Toray and Nitto Seimo will develop carbon dioxide emissions. Combined
Toray thereafter leveraged a pro- and manufacture innovative fibres and efforts across the entire supply chain,
prietary technology employing some fishing nets made from process scraps from textile and fishing net manufactu-
nylon from discarded fishing nets to and other pre-consumer materials and rers to fishermen to recycle this equip-
develop a recycled fibre that is compa- such post-consumer materials as used ment, have accelerated development.”

ELECTRIC MOBILITY
EcoProBM, SK On, Ford plan cathode manufacturing

facility in Canada

South Korean firms – SK On and tery materials for Ford’s future electric to 45,000-tpa of cathode active mate-
EcoProBM – are joining up with vehicles in the region. rials (CAM), supporting the making of
American automaker, Ford, to build a up to 225,000 EVs annually. Cathode
C$1.2-bn (over $880-mn) cathode The Federal Government of Canada producer, EcoProBM, will oversee the
manufacturing facility in Québec, Canada. and the provincial government of day-to-day operations of the facility,
Quebec have promised financial assis- while SK On and Ford will become in-
Scheduled to begin production in tance of C$644-mn. The planned site vestors once the deal is closed, accord-
2026, the facility is to provide key bat- will have the capacity to produce up ing to the partners’ joint statement.

166 Chemical Weekly September 5, 2023

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