Automa Chem 2026 to Tackle Advanced Circularity and Commercial

With regulatory mandates, feedstock volatility and decarbonisation demands continuing to rise, chemical companies find sustainability harder to reconcile with profitability. Automa Chem 2026 (26-27 October, Berlin) tackles this challenge with a dedicated roundtable on bio-based and circular value chains to move beyond marketing and examine the practical P&L impact of circular chemistry.

The Crisis and the Opportunity

The data shows a clear picture: worth $6.3 trillion, the chemical industry supplies the building blocks for 96% of manufactured goods. Yet the move toward green feedstocks is proving expensive and technically demanding. The bio-based chemicals market is projected to hit $251 billion by 2035 (from $113 billion in 2025), but most producers haven’t resolved the code on cost-effective implementation.

Of the 158 million metric tonnes of chemicals produced annually, only 10% are recycled. Meanwhile, the European Union’s new chemical recycling content targets and the impending Circular Economy Act add regulatory urgency.

From Challenge to Solution

The gap between ambition and execution is clear. The Automa Chem 2026 roundtable steps into this space with a lineup of industry leaders focused on concrete approaches to align sustainability targets with business outcomes:

• Hendrik Rasch (Vice President – Circular Packaging & Plastics Recycling, Evonik) covers the company’s chemical recycling technologies, specifically Purocel™ adsorbents.
• Miguel Perdigão Silva (Senior Process Engineer, Worley) discusses how techno-economic modelling can help producers align circular production costs with market expectations, given that recycled materials often don’t match virgin specifications.
• Andree Blesgen (Head of Technology Platform Depolymerization Technologies, Evonik) details Evonik’s depolymerisation technology for breaking down complex polyurethane waste.
• Séval Schichtel (Global Business Development & Sales Manager, Clariant) presents Clariant’s adsorbent and catalyst portfolio (Clarit Pyrolyse™, Clarit Protect™, HDMax™), which upgrades contaminated plastic waste to virgin-quality feedstocks.
• Rudy Lamond (Growth & Innovation Leader Water Treatment, Air Liquide) examines how CO₂ can replace mineral acids for pH control in wastewater treatment.

A Peak Moment for the Industry

The discussion comes at a defining moment. European chemical production capacity fell by 5% in 2023, with more plant closures ongoing. Meanwhile, the European Commission’s new Chemicals Industry Action Plan signals support for decarbonisation, circularity and bio-based chemicals.

All of this creates a growing need for pragmatic solutions, which is exactly what Automa Chem 2026 is structured for: open, practical conversation with an agenda covering real engineering and economic models that offer a path through the current downturn.

The final registration is available at https://sh.bgs.group