Japan’s Kansai Association of Corporate Executives praises SK Chemicals’ recycling technologies

• Japanese manufacturing executives visit SK Chemicals’ Ulsan plant
• Strong interest in chemical recycling technology that delivers material properties comparable to petroleum-based materials, as well as expanding applications

ULSAN, South Korea, April 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — A Japanese business delegation visited SK Chemicals to gain a firsthand look at the company’s recycled-plastics technologies and solutions.

SK Chemicals (CEO: Ahn Jae-hyun) announced on the 13th that the Kansai Association of Corporate Executives, a business organization from Japan’s Kansai region, visited SK Chemicals’ Ulsan plant in Nam-gu, Ulsan, for a briefing on the company’s circular recycling technologies and a tour of its production facilities.

The Kansai Association of Corporate Executives is a leading business organization in the Kansai region, comprising about 600 major companies, including Panasonic Holdings and Sony Group, and around 1,500 corporate executives. It is regarded as one of the three major economic organizations in Kansai, alongside the Kansai Economic Federation and the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The event, organized to exchange technologies and trends in the recycled-plastics sector, was attended by 37 executives and representatives from companies affiliated with the Association’s Circular Economy Committee, including hygiene and household products company Saraya, automotive parts company Toyota Mobility, and airline All Nippon Airways (ANA).

Attendees were briefed on the overall process, from the collection and sorting of waste plastics to depolymerization, repolymerization, material production, and application in finished goods, as well as on depolymerization itself, the core technology that converts waste plastics back into feedstock. Participants also toured the production site to review manufacturing processes for materials, including copolyesters, as well as quality-control procedures.

The Association’s visit is understood to have been driven by growing interest in the recyclability and sustainability of materials in Japan, particularly across the manufacturing sector, as companies seek alternatives to conventional materials. In Japan as well, active policy discussions are underway, much like in the EU and Korea, on mandating the use of recycled plastics in areas such as packaging and home appliances for companies that use plastics on a scale above a certain threshold.

Yusuke Saraya, President and CEO of Saraya Co., Ltd., who joined the visit, said, “At a time when most companies are still presenting recycled-plastics technologies as goals to be realized sometime in the future, I was impressed that SK Chemicals already has technologies and solutions ready for commercialization and immediate application. Depolymerization-based recycled materials that offer material properties, quality, and hygiene on par with petroleum-based plastics will be a compelling alternative to conventional materials in food and beverage packaging.”

SK Chemicals plans to step up marketing efforts in the growing Japanese market, aiming to increase both brand recognition and market share in the recycled-plastics segment.

Kim Hyun-seok, Head of the Recycling Business Division at SK Chemicals, said, “Japan is seeing rapid growth, with demand for CR PET last year increasing more than fivefold year on year. We will further strengthen our position in the Japanese market by providing solutions tailored to customers’ needs in applications such as food and beverage containers and automotive interior materials.”

Meanwhile, SK Chemicals has been gradually expanding its recycling infrastructure, spanning everything from global production hubs and technology demonstration to the conversion of waste plastics into feedstock. In 2023, the company established a chemical recycling production subsidiary in Shantou, Guangdong Province, China, where it is commercially producing r-BHET and SKYPET CR. In Korea, it established the Recycle Innovation Center (RIC), a depolymerization-based plastic recycling demonstration facility, creating a research and production system capable of recycling a wide range of waste plastics. Late last year, it also established a joint venture with Kelinle, a plastics recycling specialist in Shaanxi Province, China, to build the Feedstock Innovation Center (FIC), outlining plans to directly convert waste plastics into feedstock and to build procurement capabilities.

 

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