Investments: Lotte Chemical to sell 25% stake in Indonesian ethylene project; Xycle obtains funding for Rotterdam recycling plant

Taking the path to liquidating its assets, Lotte Chemical Corp (LCC) is disposing of a 25% stake in PT Lotte Chemical Indonesia (LCI).’The company said this would lower LCC’s direct interest in the Lotte Chemical Indonesia’s ethylene project to 24% from 49%.

Malaysia-based subsidiary Lotte Chemical Titan, in which LCC controls 75.86%, holds the remaining 51% stake in LCI.

The firm said it had received an offer from a group of companies comprising one securities firm and five special purpose corporations set up by five other securities companies, for the 25% stake in LCI for US$462.7 million.

LCI was founded in 2016 to construct a petrochemical plant in Indonesia that could produce up to 1 million tonnes of ethylene and is set to start up this year.

For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2024 (FY24), Lotte Chemical Titan’s net loss widened to RM1.18 billion from a net loss of RM780.29 million in the previous corresponding period, while revenue dipped to RM7.44 billion from RM7.65 billion a year earlier.

The company said it foresaw continued volatility in the global business environment in the near term.

“Geopolitical factors, including the Russia-Ukraine War, tension in the Middle East and the impact of President Trump’s policies which may influence trade policies and global relations, are expected to contribute to volatility in crude oil prices.”

The chemical firm has been selling shares and ownership in overseas subsidiaries to resolve its liquidity, including a 40% stake in Lotte Chemical Louisiana, its ethylene glycol producer in the US, for 660 billion won in October. The firm also dissolved Lotte Ube Synthetic Rubber, its Malaysian rubber production business, in October and sold Lotte Chemical Pakistan in February.

In other news Xycle, a Rotterdam-based start-up focused on promoting a circular economy for plastics through chemical recycling technology, has announced that it has successfully raised funds for the development of its first commercial-scale plant.

The funding comes from a mix of equity investments from a consortium of investors, including chemical firm Dow, financial institutions ING Group, Invest-NL (partly supported by InvestEU), and logistics firm Vopak, as well as senior debt from Polestar Capital.

This investment will enable Xycle to build a flagship recycling facility, strategically situated in the Port of Rotterdam, a key international hub for Europe. Its first commercial-scale plant will be capable of processing 21,000 tonnes/year of plastic waste. The plant is anticipated to be fully operational by the fourth quarter of 2026.

Founded in 2020, Xycle converts hard-to-recycle plastic waste—typically sent to landfills or incinerated—into valuable resources, supporting a circular economy for plastics.

The start-up’s chemical recycling process utilises low-temperature pyrolysis to efficiently break down challenging plastic waste into pyrolysis oil. This oil increases the liquid fraction available for use as cracker feedstock in the production of new plastics. The technology allows plastic waste, which would otherwise end up in landfills or incinerators, to be repurposed for high-value applications such as food-grade packaging, and medical and automotive components.

Dow will purchase the circular feedstock produced and utilise it to create virgin-quality circular plastics, which are in high demand by international brands.

Arnd Thomas, CEO of Xycle said, “Securing funding for the construction of our facility in the Port of Rotterdam marks an important step in developing and expanding our unique pyrolysis-based technology, which has been shown to deliver best-in-class pyrolysis yield for cracker feedstock.”

Looking ahead, Xcycle says its aim is to expand by building additional chemical recycling facilities worldwide, utilising larger reactor sizes to boost the capacity of each plant to 100,000 tonnes/year.

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