Packaging manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region will gain a potential new source of raw materials in 2024 when NatureWorks begins operations at its new plant now under construction in Thailand. The U.S.-based company produces low-carbon polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymers made from renewable resources.
Once operational, the fully integrated plant will produce lactic acid, lactide, and PLA under the company's Ingeo brand. It will be NatureWork's first factory in the Asia-Pacific region. The facility will supply PLA pellets to regional customers that include makers of single-serve coffee capsules and pods as well as mesh for tea bags.
The plant is located in the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex, an industrial park in Nakhon Sawan Province, some 240 kilometers north of Bangkok. With an annual biopolymer capacity of 75,000 tons, the factory will produce the company's full Ingeo product line.
Site preparation was completed in June 2022. In mid-November, NatureWorks announced the selection of local firm TTCL Public Company Limited as the general contractor for procurement, construction, commissioning, and startup support services. The company plans to launch operations at the plant by the second half of 2024.
Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Plymouth, Minnesota, NatureWorks LLC is a joint venture between Cargill Incorporated, the global agribusiness group, and PTT Global Chemical Public Company Limited, Thailand’s largest producer of chemicals.