BERGEN OP ZOOM, Netherlands — Relement B.V., a technology company focused on renewable chemistry, has selected Solvay Research & Innovation Centre (Solvay R&IC), with the help of Dutch impact investor Invest-NL, to carry out process optimization work. Solvay R&IC will assist with the scale-up of the proprietary product 3-methylphthalic anhydride (bio MPA). Relement has received support from Invest-NL for this scale-up work, which is a key milestone to become production ready.

A disruptive, renewable chemical ingredient from Relement, bio MPA has the unique ability to replace the fossil ingredient phthalic anhydride in coatings, making them more sustainable. In addition, bio MPA offers improved properties such as increased hardness of coatings. 

Relement CTO Stefano Iannacone said, “Carrying out process optimization studies are important milestones for bio MPA commercialization. In the chemical world, innovative start-ups like Relement often encounter financial hurdles to scale-up their production process. Typically, a pilot facility is needed which requires significant capital investment and resources. To minimize risks and to speed up our technology scale-up, we have therefore scouted the chemical innovation landscape and found that several large chemical companies have R&D assets and know-how open for external selected collaborations. We believe that Solvay R&IC Lyon is a great partner to assist Relement in our journey towards commercial scale.”

Invest-NL Senior Business Developer Guus Dubbink added, “We helped Relement to develop an innovative new business model helping to overcome the first financial hurdles, based on outsourcing the demonstration step. Invest-NL supports Relement in its mission to commercialize and scale-up production. Furthermore, the learnings will be shared to the bio-based chemistry community, thereby helping similar Dutch start-ups.”