Tomorrow's plastics start today

More than 300 million tons of plastic are produced around the world each year. Plastics are lightweight, resistant, waterproof and inexpensive, making them ideal materials for food packaging, automotive body parts, insulated coating for buildings, appliances, medical equipment and apparel. Only an estimated 9% of these plastics are recycled today, while an estimated 11 million tons end up in the ocean each year.

TotalEnergies has been working with actors from across the plastics value chain for many years – from manufacturers and research centers to waste collectors and their customers – to improve end-of-life management of plastics and reduce their environmental footprint. These actions are part of a circular economy model in which everyone has a role to play.

For TotalEnergies, the challenge is to develop recycling and produce bio-based polymers. The Company has initiated numerous projects to promote different avenues and value chains for plastics recycling. One of them is mechanical recycling, in which plastic waste is sorted, cleaned, and crushed before being melted down for re-use. Another is advanced recycling, which involves modifying the molecular structure of plastic waste to get back to its basic raw material called “monomer”, which can be transformed in brand new polymers, at the root of all plastic materials.

TotalEnergies also produces biopolymers, including PLA, a 100% bio-based, recyclable and compostable bioplastic.

The Company has set a goal of producing 30% circular polymers by 2030. In addition, TotalEnergies is a founding member of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a consortium of 70 companies that have pledged to allocate $1.5 billion by 2025 to implement solutions for eliminating plastic pollution in the environment, particularly in the oceans. To commit to a more circular economy for plastics also contributes to the planet's sustainable development.