NatureWorks gets final approval to build massive bioplastics facility

In Thailand, biobased polylactic acid maker NatureWorks has received final permission from parent companies Cargill and GC International Corporation to build a $600 million, 75,000 metric tons per year production facility. The site at the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex will produce lactic acid, lactide, and biopolymer. Construction is set to begin in the second quarter of 2022 and be complete in 2024. 

Minnesota-based NatureWorks says the site will be the world’s first fully integrated PLA complex. 

“Sustainability creates balanced growth in economic, social, and environmental dimensions, driven by the framework of the [UN Sustainable Development Goals,” Dr. Kongrapan Intarajang, CEO of GC, says in a press statement. “Today, GC and Cargill, joint owners of NatureWorks, the top PLA biopolymer manufacturer globally, are ready to expand investment in the biochemical sector following the BOI’s investment promotion approval of NatureWorks.”

Jacobs will provide front-end engineering design.