Murata Manufacturing : Investing in R PLUS JAPAN, a Company that Recycles Used Plastic

5/13/2024

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
President: Norio Nakajima

Murata Manufacturing, Co., Ltd. (hereinafter, "Murata Manufacturing") has decided to invest in R PLUS JAPAN, a joint venture company engaged in recycling used plastic (hereinafter, the "Enterprise"), with the aim of using sustainable resources.

In recent years, social problems associated with global population growth, such as resources running out and the amount of waste increasing, are becoming more dire, and demand is being put on companies to work toward using sustainable resources.
This Enterprise aims to establish a plastic recycling scheme encompassing raw materials, usage, and disposal, in collaboration with different industrial sectors. By participating in this Enterprise, Murata hopes to promote the recycling of used plastic.

[Participating companies]

Murata has set "sustainable resource use" as a key issue (materiality) in both Vision 2030 and Mid-term Direction 2024, and our goals for 2050 are to achieve a sustainable resource usage rate^*1 of 100% for procured goods, and a recycling rate^*2 of 100% for emissions.
For example, in 2022, we became the first company in the electronic component manufacturing industry to successfully establish a closed-loop recycling system for the PET film used in the multilayer ceramic capacitor manufacturing process, which is then used again for the same purpose.

Through this investment and other initiatives, we will continue contributing to the realization of a sustainable society.

Murata's initiatives to achieve sustainable resource use

^{*1 For the materials used in our products, we will (1) not use resources at a high risk of depletion, and (2) not use resources that our stakeholders have prohibited or requested to be limited.
*2 Reuse the emissions produced during manufacturing as resources to be used once again at Murata or other companies.}

■ Initiatives in the joint venture

The company that we will be investing in, R PLUS JAPAN, is working with Anellotech Inc., a biochemical venture company based in the US, to develop an efficient recycling technology for used plastic that will have a low environmental impact. R PLUS JAPAN envisions a future in which waste is eliminated, and is working in collaboration with different industrial sectors to establish a recycling scheme that includes the sorting and processing of used plastics, monomer production, polymer production, packaging and container production, trading companies, food and beverage manufacturers, and banks, in order to contribute to solving the plastics problem, a problem that is common around the world.

● About the recycling technology for used plastics

It is said that currently in Japan, most plastics other than PET bottles are incinerated^*3. The technology used by R PLUS JAPAN is a chemical recycling technology^*4 that returns plastics including PET bottles to their raw state (benzene, toluene, xylene, ethylene, propylene, etc.).
The plastic can be processed in fewer steps than conventional chemical recycling achieved through the oil conversion process, which is hoped will produce fewer CO2 emissions and require less energy. We believe that if this technology becomes firmly established, then more used plastics can be efficiently recycled.

^{*3 Including thermal recovery, which recovers the heat generated during incineration for use in power generation and heat supply
*4 The used plastic is not merely recycled as is, but undergoes a change in chemical composition through a chemical reaction first}

■ Overview of the joint venture company

Company name	R PLUS JAPAN Co., Ltd.
Established	June 5, 2020
Headquarters	2-3-3 Daiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo
President	Tsunehiko Yokoi
Business	Developing and promoting the use of recycling technology for used plastics

For reference: About Anellotech Inc.
Founded in 2008, Anellotech Inc. is a biochemical venture company whose headquarters and R&D facility are based in Pearl River, New York. The company has technology that is capable of producing benzene, toluene, and xylene from non-edible plant-based materials that have the same performance as those produced by refining petroleum.

■ Related links
Use of sustainable resources | Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
Murata to Begin Closed-loop Recycling of PET Film from Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors | Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

Murata in Brief

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of ceramic-based passive electronic components & solutions, communication modules and power supply modules. Murata is committed to the development of advanced electronic materials and leading edge, multi-functional, high-density modules. The company has employees and manufacturing facilities throughout the world.

For more information, visit Murata's website