ENEOS and Mitsubishi Chemical have successfully completed a state-of-the-art chemical recycling facility at their Kashima site in Ibaraki Prefecture. This innovative plant marks a major stride toward sustainable plastic waste management. The plant utilizes hydrothermal processing to recycle plastic waste.
Facility Overview
The new facility can process 20,000 tons of waste plastic per year, making it one of the largest chemical-recycling installations in Japan. It transforms discarded plastic into valuable recycled oil, which ENEOS refines and Mitsubishi Chemical feeds into its naphtha crackers.
Cutting‑Edge Supercritical Water Process
Instead of traditional mechanical recycling, the facility uses supercritical water to break down plastics at high temperature and pressure. Licensing the HydroPRS process from Mura Technology, the companies achieve even heating and minimize gas by-products, resulting in high yields of clean oil.
Benefits and Challenges
First, this chemical method accepts mixed plastic waste without extensive sorting. Second, it generates oil with virgin-level quality—suitable even for food-grade applications.
However, it does demand considerable energy, although lifecycle emissions remain lower than incineration. Additionally, it requires robust systems for collecting plastic feedstock—currently a global challenge, with only ~9% of plastic recycled worldwide.
Progress and Future Plans
As per Indian Chemical News, the plant reached completion on July 3, 2025, and it is now moving toward obtaining ISCC PLUS certification to ensure sustainability credentials. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Chemical plans to pilot recycled polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) production from the oil later this year, in collaboration with local partners including Kashima city, Refinverse, Toyo Seikan, Kewpie, and Kasumi supermarket. The demonstration phase will run through mid-2026.
Toward a Circular Economy
Overall, this initiative exemplifies a shift toward a true circular economy. By converting previously discarded plastics into feedstock-quality oil—and eventually back into plastics—the project closes the loop on resource use. Furthermore, the companies aim to scale up operations and continuously optimize the process.
In summary
ENEOS and Mitsubishi Chemical have launched a high-capacity, advanced recycling plant in Ibaraki. They now refine validated technologies into practical operations, reduce fossil fuel dependence, lower carbon emissions, and pioneer recycled plastic production—all essential steps toward a sustainable, circular future.
