Masdar and Envyron Energy collaborate on plastic-to-fuel technology

Masdar, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, is collaborating with Envyron Energy, a subsidiary of Alliances for Global Sustainability, to advance plastic-to-fuel technology, it was announced today at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

The objective of this collaboration is to explore the further refinement of the plastic derived fuel produced by Envyron to up-cycle it into a transportation grade fuel.

The partners will also explore ways to further improve the existing technology through research and development programs as well as pursue commercial-scale projects in the UAE and the Middle East & North Africa (MENA).

Following the signing of an MoU between Masdar and Envyron in December, a plastic-to-fuel demonstration facility is being established at Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, with the aim of converting the city’s waste plastic into usable fuel and raise awareness of the importance of sustainable waste management.

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, the prominent sustainability advocate and owner of Alliances for Global Sustainability’s subsidiary, said, "It was the UAE’s founder Sheikh Zayed who said that we must leave the land as we found it, or improve it. This collaboration between Envyron and Masdar in the Year of Zayed pays tribute to his environmental legacy. It also establishes our joint investment in the circular economy; reducing the amount of waste in our landfills and locally transforming waste plastic into energy.

"Sustainable waste management is a critical component of sustainable urban development, a key focus of this year’s Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week," said Yousef Baselaib, Executive Director for Sustainable Real Estate at Masdar.

"As Masdar City continues to grow, we will incorporate new technologies and best practices to reinforce its position as a model for low-carbon urban development. A product of our energy economy, plastic is much too valuable to be wasted."

Sustainable waste management is also part of the operating culture at Masdar City, which aims to maximise the reuse and recycling of waste construction material and other waste products in its ongoing expansion.

According to the market intelligence provider Euromonitor International, less than half of waste plastic drinking bottles are collected for recycling globally, and only 7 percent are turned into new bottles. The UAE aims to divert 75 percent of its solid waste from landfill by 2021.