WPU, the plastics recycling division of energy and commodities group Vitol, has announced plans to construct a chemical recycling plant for end-of-life plastics at the Port of Rotterdam, adjacent to Vitol’s existing refinery VPR.
The proposed facility would have an annual processing capacity of 80,000 tonnes of post-consumer end-of-life plastic, positioning it as one of the largest chemical recycling plants in Europe.
The plant will deploy pyrolysis technology, a process WPU already operates commercially at its facility in Denmark, which has a recycling capacity of 20,000 tonnes per year and is currently running close to full capacity.
The Rotterdam facility would represent a fourfold increase in scale, reflecting both the maturation of the technology and growing demand for chemically recycled plastic outputs.
WPU is among the first companies to deploy plastics pyrolysis at commercial scale, giving it an established operational foundation on which to base the larger Rotterdam installation.
The facility’s location alongside VPR would enable recycled outputs to connect directly with existing industrial and refinery infrastructure at the port, supporting integration into broader petrochemical and circular economy value chains.
The announcement adds to Rotterdam’s growing profile as a hub for circular economy and energy transition infrastructure, complementing ongoing investments in hydrogen production, shore power and sustainable fuel storage across the port area.
