AkzoNobel and Solvay have signed a three-year agreement whereby AkzoNobel will increase the use of renewable raw materials in its paints and coatings, building on an existing partnership between the two companies. Under the terms of the deal, AkzoNobel will progressively increase the use of Solvay's bio-based epichlorohydrin, or Epicerol®, which is already contained in many of the company's resins for its coatings products. Developed and patented by international chemical group Solvay, Epicerol® is the innovative process used to produce bio-based epichlorohydrin from renewable glycerol. Epicerol® has a substantially lower carbon footprint compared with most fossil-produced epichlorohydrin.
By 2016, AkzoNobel aims to source 20 percent of its total epichlorohydrin demand as bio-based material. "We are very happy to extend our partnership with Solvay and take yet another step with our bio-based strategy," said Dick Bartelse, AkzoNobel business unit director of purchasing. "We are serious about encouraging our suppliers to invest in bio-based solutions and enabling our customers to have cutting-edge, sustainable products." Jean-Luc Préat, head of the Epicerol® business in the Solvay Emerging Biochemicals Global Business Unit, added: "This agreement illustrates the necessity of a lifecycle approach to sustainability, where all levels of the supply chain team up. This is the best way to minimize our global footprint and meet the environmental challenges our industry has to cope with. We are proud to be among the pioneers in this field together with AkzoNobel."