Italy advances chemical treatment with HOOP

Italian firm Versalis has launched a chemical treatment demonstration plant for plastic scrap in Mantua. The facility is based on its proprietary HOOP technology targeting mixed waste.

The site converts various types of end-of-life plastics into feedstock suitable for products across all applications, including food-grade and pharmaceutical packaging.

Versalis employs around 7 000 people, processing over 5.5 million tonnes of plastics every year via chemical processes. It invested ‘millions’ in the latest facility which will process upwards of 6 000 tonnes annually.

Transformation

‘Today we are giving further substance and value to circularity, one of the pillars of Versalis’s transformation plan,’ company ceo Adriano Alfani said at the official opening.

The company’s R&D project SC-HOOP was the only large-scale Italian project to be backed by the 2023 EU Innovation Fund call, out of 239 proposals submitted that year.

The patented technology has received praise at the Italian Pavilion at World Expo 2025, currently being held in Osaka, Japan.

Scaling up

Versalis co-developed HOOP with the Italian engineering firm Servizi di Ricerche e Sviluppo. Its high thermal performance pyrolysis reactor and artificial intelligence systems are combined with Versalis’ expertise in polymer property analysis. The treatment hub is intended to validate the technology application at industrial scale.

Construction on the site started in October 2023, employing more than 25 specialised contractors. Italian energy group Eni, the parent company of Versalis, says it is proud to see the venture progressing and the first production tests have been successfully completed.

Expansion plans are already in the air. Eni has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy to build a 40 000-tonne facility in Priolo. With the feasibility study completed, the project partners are currently focussing on the design phase and permits.