Synthos maintains long-term sustainability vision despite current geopolitical climate

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.—Poland's Synthos S.A. has grand plans related to sustainability, both now and in the future.

The firm said it will build its first bio-butadiene facility; has received an important certification for its entire synthetic rubber product portfolio; has long-term goals under its Evergreen strategy; and has shorter-term strategies to bridge its offerings until future advanced technology is ready to carry the main load.

But in the meantime, the political climate in the world—particularly Russia's invasion of Ukraine—has caused an energy crisis in Europe that may force some companies to temporarily shift their priorities and delay some of the current work leading to a sustainable future, according to Matteo Marchisio, director of tire materials and the synthetic rubber business unit for Synthos.

"I think the world, Europe and the U.S., in terms of sustainability, are taking a breath in this moment in order to overcome the current geopolitical situation," Marchisio told Rubber News at the ACS Rubber Division's International Elastomer Conference in Knoxville. "But in the long term, it has to go back to what was supposed to be one year ago."

Given the risk of oil and gas shortages in Europe, companies may need to reconsider their immediate priorities. "If you have to go back to burning coal, you go back to burning coal in order to fix your electricity plant, and not go only for renewable and sustainable sources. ... You have to prioritize your situation," he said.

The Synthos executive expects 2023 to continue to be a challenging year in terms of energy sourcing, but the situation should stabilize in 2024.

Marchisio, however, emphasized that while the market is very tense at the moment, the producer of synthetic rubber and other chemicals will continue its research and development tied to sustainability, and will proceed with construction on its bio-butadiene facility, which will be at its headquarters site in Oswiecim, Poland.

"When you decide to go with an investment like the new butadiene plant, you cannot stop and go. You cannot even delay," he said. "It is a trend that is well set and we expect the entire community will pay more attention on sustainability when the situation will normalize in terms of energy supply."

When Synthos, in December 2021, completed its purchase of the synthetic rubber business of Trinseo S.A.—including a facility in Schkopau, Germany—Synthos also adopted a sustainable development strategy.

Prior to the issues caused by the war in Ukraine, that long-term strategy envisioned a complete shift away from coal and a 28-percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2028; producing 100-percent sustainable products by 2030; and achieving zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Synthos also said it would boost the share of renewable raw materials it uses, and also reduce energy and utility consumption by 2030. To reach those goals, the firm planned to invest in low- and zero-carbon energy sources to develop products to slash its carbon footprint in construction, transportation and agriculture.

Then in early 2022, Synthos along with Lummus Technology and its Green Circle business, announced that the bio-butadiene technology the firms developed was ready for implementation, and that the group would move forward to the engineering and design phase of the project.

That is the commitment to build the bio-butadiene factory in Oswiecim that, when completed, will have the capacity to produce 40,000 metric tons a year, double what the companies originally had planned.

Marchisio said construction on the facility will begin in 2023, with the plant ready sometime in 2025. "We will be able to produce synthetic rubber using butadiene that is not generated by fossil feedstock," he told Rubber News. "It will be 100-percent based on ethanol."

In the meantime, Synthos and others in the industry are looking to use alternative materials for their sustainability efforts, including what is known as "second-generation ethanol."

Marchisio said first-generation ethanol made from corn is not available to those producing SR because it conflicts with the food chain. But when ethanol is later recycled, that second-generation ethanol is available for industrial use.

"But in this specific moment, there is not enough quantities available on the planet, so the industry is organizing itself in order to make more feedstock available," he said.

While these efforts are ongoing, Synthos received ISCC Plus certification for its entire SR portfolio from the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification, a globally applicable sustainability certification system that covers all sustainable feedstocks Scheme. This enables companies throughout the supply chain to demonstrate the sustainability of their products based on traceability and mass balance requirements, according to Synthos.

Much of this involved the synthetic rubber firm using pyrolysis to produce oil as a feedstock in producing butadiene, Marchisio said.

Synthos also has a minority stake in Tyre Recycling Solutions S.A., a Swiss scale-up company that specializes in developing solutions for the collection, processing and recycling of end-of-life tires. With this partnership, Synthos said it can offer customers a sustainable solution in the form of high-performance recycled rubber powder made from recycled tires.

At the IEC, Synthos also highlighted its advanced solution SBR that can be used in production of high-performance tires, bringing improved fuel efficiency and longer battery range due to a balance of low rolling resistance and wet grip, an excellent mechanical property profile, and balanced wear and processing properties.

"Looking ahead to the ban on (internal combustion engine) cars by 2035 in California, we believe advanced SSBR will play an increasingly important role as one of the leading solutions for tire treads for electric vehicles that meet the technical requirements for high torque, higher weight and longer battery ranges," Marchisio said.