The $375 million grant reinstated! Eastman’s polyester recycling facility plans a 30% capacity expansion.

Click to view conference information. From December 17–19, 2026, the 4th Annual Polymer Circularity & Recycling Conference will be held in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. Centered on the theme “Advanced Recycling · High-Value Regeneration · Closed-Loop Applications,” the conference will focus on high-quality recycled plastics, chemical recycling, waste textiles and rubber, polyurethane, and composite material recycling—facilitating exchanges on cutting-edge technologies, industrial implementation practices, and downstream applications. Academia, research institutions, and industry professionals are warmly invited to attend and exchange insights. According to [Polymer Circularity & Recycling], on October 29, Eastman announced that the $375 million grant previously awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has been reinstated. After deducting approximately $35 million already received under the original agreement for design and engineering support, the remaining grant amount stands at roughly $340 million, to be applied toward Eastman’s revised U.S. polyester recycling investment plan. This grant was originally intended to support Eastman’s construction of its second U.S. molecular recycling facility in Longview, Texas. As outlined in Eastman’s 2024 plan, the facility was projected to recycle approximately 110,000 metric tons annually of hard-to-recycle plastic waste. However, per Eastman’s 2025 annual report, the DOE terminated the grant on May 29, 2025. Following reinstatement, the project scope has been adjusted. First, expanding the capacity of Eastman’s existing facility in Kingsport. Eastman plans to increase the output of its commercial-scale methanolysis plant in Kingsport, Tennessee, by approximately 30% through eliminating production bottlenecks and implementing technological upgrades. The company states this expansion opportunity requires only modest capital investment and has now been incorporated into the DOE grant’s coverage. Second, reactivating and retrofitting underutilized U.S. recycling assets. Related investments will cover waste collection, processing, and recycled-material production—strengthening the feedstock supply and processing infrastructure for hard-to-recycle polyester waste. The second U.S. methanolysis facility is now being planned in phased milestones, with site selection and construction timing retained as flexible.

Daily Report – June 3, 2025

1. Jinan Changqing District plans to lease 34 new-energy sanitation vehicles, with an eight-year lease totaling nearly RMB 50 million. The Urban Management Bureau of Changqing District, Jinan City, has released a procurement intent notice for leasing sanitation operation vehicles, with a budget of RMB 49.3 million. This project intends to lease a total of 34 vehicles—including compression trucks, kitchen-waste trucks, and hook-lift trucks—all required to be new-energy vehicles, for an eight-year lease term. 2. Federal subsidy rollback: U.S. Department of Energy cancels $3.7 billion in clean-energy project funding—including Eastman’s plastic recycling project. In May 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy abruptly announced the cancellation of $3.7 billion (approximately RMB 26.8 billion) in clean-energy and manufacturing subsidy funds previously pledged by the Biden administration—impacting up to 24 major projects already approved. Among the most closely watched is Eastman Chemical Co.’s planned chemical recycling facility for waste plastics near Longview, Texas. 3. Equity acquisition without final payment: A subsidiary of Tsinghua Environment was ordered by court to offset debt with equity valued at RMB 490 million. On June 2, Tsinghua Environment issued a public announcement stating that, recently, the shareholder structure of its controlled subsidiary Zhejiang Tsinghua Eco-Tech Co., Ltd. underwent changes—the controlling shareholder shifted from Tsinghua Environment to China PICC Yuanwang Tsinghua Science & Technology Service Equity Investment Center (Limited Partnership) (hereinafter “PICC Fund”). This change resulted from a ruling by the Beijing Financial Court, which judicially transferred Tsinghua Environment’s 93.419% equity stake in Zhejiang Tsinghua Eco-Tech to the PICC Fund. According to the announcement, in April 2018, Tsinghua Environment signed an agreement with the PICC Fund and other parties to acquire 100% equity of Pu Hua Environmental Protection Co., Ltd. (“Pu Hua Environmental”) for RMB 1.3 billion in cash. Under the agreement, Tsinghua Environment was obligated to pay the PICC Fund RMB 841 million for the equity transfer. Upon completion of the acquisition, Pu Hua Environmental became a controlled subsidiary of Tsinghua Environment. However, due to Tsinghua Environment’s failure to make timely payment of the equity transfer consideration, the PICC Fund filed a lawsuit against Tsinghua Environment in 2022, demanding payment of the outstanding balance of RMB 471 million plus liquidated damages. In 2024, the Beijing Financial Court froze Tsinghua Environment’s 93.419% equity stake in Zhejiang Tsinghua Eco-Tech; the stake was auctioned in March 2025 but failed to attract any bids. Ultimately, the court ruled to offset the PICC Fund’s debt with the equity stake, valued at RMB 490 million—resulting in Tsinghua Environment no longer holding any equity in Zhejiang Tsinghua Eco-Tech, and Zhejiang Tsinghua Eco-Tech ceasing to be a consolidated subsidiary of Tsinghua Environment. 4. First in China! Hunan Province issues implementation plan for National Data Element Comprehensive Pilot Zone: To build over 20 benchmark trusted data spaces. The “Hunan Province Implementation Plan for the National Data Element Comprehensive Pilot Zone (2025–2027)” was approved successively by the provincial government’s executive meeting and the Provincial Committee’s Deepening Reform Commission meeting on May 26 and 28, respectively, and is set to be officially issued and implemented shortly. As one of ten national pilot zones, Hunan will leverage its distinctive advantages in advanced manufacturing and audio-visual industries to systematically advance market-oriented allocation reforms for data elements, aiming to establish a nationally exemplary model. 5. RMB 140-million contract! Jiujiang City Urban Management Bureau mandates a smart sanitation management system for the project. On May 30, 2025, the Urban Management Bureau of Chaisang District, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, issued a tender notice for the “Chaisang District Urban Sanitation Cleaning Marketization Service Project” in Jiujiang City. The project carries a total budget of approximately RMB 139 million and a service period of three years.

DOE Reinstates $375 Million Eastman Recycling Award Under Revised Plan

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The US Department of Energy has reinstated a $375 million award to Eastman for expanding its methanolysis plant in Tennessee instead of building a new facility in Texas. The funds will support technology upgrades and strengthen the recycled PET supply chain.

chemweek

2026-11-09

DOE Reinstates $375 Million Eastman Recycling Award Under Revised Plan

DOE Reinstates $375 Million Eastman Recycling Award Under Revised Plan

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