Press Release
台北,
December 30, 2015
EU initiative presents options for exploiting carbon dioxide:
CO2 as raw material – topic at the Climate Summit
台灣科思創
企業溝通部
11049 台北市信義路 5
段 7 號 55 樓 A 室
聯絡人
Renee Chen
電話:
+886-2-8726-2603
+886-973066472
Email
renee.chen
@covestro.com
• Greenhouse gas can be used in plastics manufacturing
• Covestro leads model program of the European Union
New possibilities for utilizing the greenhouse gas carbon dioxi de are a topic at
the UN Climate Change Conference. Related activities in industry, science and
politics were presented at an accompanying event of the Paris Summit by
Climate-KIC, a European Union initiative for climate innovations. Based on a
model program named “enCO2re”, Climate-KIC wants to promote the partial
replacement of increasingly scarce petroleum with CO2 in the plastics industry.
The program is headed by materials manufacturer Covestro, a pioneer in the
field.
Climate-KIC presented its model program and others on Friday evening at an
event at the Grand Palais in Paris. Also in attendance were Mary Robinson, UN
Special Envoy for Climate Change, and distinguished climate researcher Hans
Joachim Schellnhuber, Chairman of the Governing Board of Climate-KIC.
Utilization in foam, rubber and synthetic fibers
EnCO2re supports technological innovations, such as the possibility of using
carbon dioxide in the future to manufacture rubber and synthetic fibers. A
process developed by Covestro that produces raw materials for premium foams
with this climate gas is already in the advanced stages. The company aims to
launch industrial-scale manufacturing in 2016.
“The way of the future is to utilize CO2 to the fullest possible extent, so as to
close the carbon cycle,” explained Dr. Markus Steilemann, member of the
Covestro Board of Management responsible for innovation. “We are very
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pleased that governments are recognizing this fact and systematically promoting
corresponding efforts in the business community and science – as Germany has
been doing for quite some time and now also the EU. With its expertise in
process and catalysis research, our company can and wants to advance
activities in carbon dioxide utilization.”
An appeal to the business community, science, politics and society
Dr. Christoph Sievering, Head of Energy Policy at Covestro and Chairman of the
enCO2re Steering Committee, emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary
collaboration in this field. As an example, he mentioned that both leading
industrial companies and six top research universities in Europe participate in
the enCO2re program as research partners. “Beyond collaborations between
industry and science, an active exchange with politics and society is necessary
to successfully launch new CO2 technologies and demonstrate that industry can
- and must - be part of the solution to the climate problem.”
One goal of enCO2re therefore is to increase the significance of this issue in the
public eye. The Climate-KIC program further studies value chains in order to
bring CO2 sources and suppliers together with potential users. Climate-KIC is
one of several Knowledge and Innovation Communities set up by the European
Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), and one of the largest European
innovation initiatives for climate change mitigation and adaptation.
About Covestro:
With 2014 sales of EUR 11.8 billion, Covestro is among the world’s largest
polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of hightech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products
used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive,
electrical and electronics, construction and sports and leisure industries.
Covestro, formerly Bayer MaterialScience, has 30 production sites worldwide
and employs approximately 15,700 people (calculated as full-time equivalents)
at the end of September 2015.
This press release is available for download from the Covestro press server at
www.covestro.com. A photo is available there for download as well. Please mind
the source of the picture.
Find more information at www.covestro.com.
Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CovestroGroup
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Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made
by Covestro AG. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material
differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the
company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Covestro’s and Bayer’s
public reports which are available on the Covestro website at www.covestro.com as well as on the Bayer
website at www.bayer.com. Covestro and Bayer assume no liability whatsoever to update these forwardlooking statements or to confirm them to future events or developments.
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