Alterra, a global leader in advanced plastic recycling technologies, is proud to announce the successful deployment of its pyrolysis oil in Australia, marking a significant step toward a circular economy for plastics.
In a major trial conducted this week, 9.5 tons of plastic pyrolysis oil (PPO)—produced by Alterra from end-of-life plastics at its facility in Akron, Ohio—was processed at Viva Energy’s Geelong Refinery. The trial demonstrated the technical compatibility of Alterra’s advanced recycled product with existing refining infrastructure, highlighting the transformative potential of Alterra’s technology in large-scale plastic recycling solutions across Australia.
The successful results demonstrate how Alterra’s technology can produce high-quality PPO at scale and supports Viva Energy to build their case for a permanent soft plastics recycling facility in Australia.
“The successful trial confirms that our technology can be integrated seamlessly with conventional refining systems and deliver high-purity outputs from challenging plastic waste streams,” said Valerio Coppini, Chief Commercial Officer of Alterra. “We are excited to partner with Viva Energy to support them in their journey to validate the processing of soft plastics pyrolysis oil at the Geelong Refinery. We see this as an important step in bringing scalable, sustainable plastic recycling to Australia. This is about more than waste diversion—it’s about redefining the lifecycle of plastic.”
Alterra’s proprietary process breaks down post-consumer plastics into their original chemical building blocks, creating a sustainable feedstock for new plastics and chemicals production. The PPO used in the Geelong refinery trial represents the type of material that will be produced at scale in the proposed recycling facility.
Bill Patterson, Executive General Manager – Refining at Viva Energy said it was exciting to see a new future emerge for the refinery. “Over many decades the Geelong Refinery has played an important role in making fuels and other products which are essential to our way of life in Australia,” Mr. Patterson said. “We want to continue to do this, and this initiative is a critical step in demonstrating the various roles our facility can play in the energy transition, establishing a circular economy and helping address Australia’s discarded plastic issue.”
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