SK Chemicals has signed an exclusive supply agreement with Austrian automotive carpet manufacturer Durmont, positioning the South Korean chemical company to benefit from stricter European Union vehicle recycling regulations expected to take effect by early 2026.
The partnership allows SK Chemicals to supply its SKYPET CR recycled PET materials to Durmont, which produces carpets for approximately 7 million vehicles annually. Durmont was acquired in 2023 by Dutch supplier Visscher-Caravelle Group, which commands over 40% of the European car floor mat market and counts major European automakers among its clients.
The timing appears strategic. The EU is preparing to replace its current End-of-Life Vehicles Directive with more stringent regulations that will mandate higher recycled content in automotive components and impose extended producer responsibility on manufacturers. The new rules are designed to address what regulators call the “missing vehicles” problem—roughly 35% of deregistered vehicles across the EU whose whereabouts remain unknown.
SK Chemicals has invested heavily in its recycling capabilities, spending 130 billion won ($94 million) in 2023 to establish SK Shantou and claiming to operate the world’s first commercialized chemical recycling facilities. The company is also constructing a Recycling Innovation Center at its Ulsan plant, scheduled to begin operations in 2026 with an annual capacity of 50 tons of recycled materials.
The partnership includes South Korean logistics firm Paarang, which will handle supply chain coordination between the companies. According to SK Chemicals CEO Ahn Jae-hyun, the collaboration addresses growing European interest in vehicle circularity driven by carbon neutrality regulations.
However, questions remain about the scalability and economics of chemical recycling compared to conventional mechanical recycling methods, particularly as the automotive industry faces pressure to reduce costs while meeting increasingly complex regulatory requirements.
