RIL, one of world’s largest producers of single-use plastics, is now eyeing biodegradable, compostable plastics

• Reliance pledges to double its recycling capacity to 5 billion PET bottles a year.
  
• RIL announced the launch of a PET plant at Dahej, Gujarat.
  
• The chairman of RIL said that its scientists have had a breakthrough in terms of generating compostable plastics.
  

Addressing the annual general meeting of Reliance shareholders on Monday, Mukesh Ambani said that the scientists of his company have developed pathways to produce biodegradable and compostable plastics to completely replace single-use plastics.

RIL is one of the largest producers of plastics in the world and contributes to a little over half of India’s plastic production, according to a Times of India report. It has however has pledged to fight climate change and is also doubling its recycling capacities.

“Reliance is a leader in recycling of polyester and plastics. We will strengthen our leadership position in PET recycling by more than doubling our bottle recycling capacity to 5 billion bottles per year,” said Ambani.

RIL currently recycles 2 billion PET bottles annually at plants in Barabanki, Hoshiarpur and Nagothane. To aid this transition, RIL set up a recycled polyester staple fiber (PSF) manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh last August.

PET is a recyclable plastic, used in packaging foods and beverages. RIL also announced the launch of a million metric tonne per annum PET plant at Dahej, which will be completed by 2026.

This July, the Indian government banned the use of single-use plastics. However, the road to reducing plastic waste is long and hard as plastic of many forms still end up in landfills.

India produces 3.5 million tonnes of plastic every year and is the world’s third largest producer of single-use plastics after the USA and China.

Ambani said that climate change has endangered that very future of human life. Apart from looking at business opportunities in new energy like green hydrogen, solar PV manufacturing, RIL is also using greener ways to manage its energy needs.

Its own renewable energy consumption has jumped by 352% within a year. “We have also started consuming biomass as a fuel to produce green energy and steam to power in Dahej and Hazira sites, reducing 5% of energy consumption by green steam,” said Ambani.

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