Renewable Materials Conference 2026: Preliminary Programme Published

The Renewable Materials Conference (RMC) is the outstanding international meeting place  where innovators, companies and brands, investors and policy-makers come together to shape and drive the future of the renewable carbon resources economy. As in previous years, the conference organiser nova-Institute expects 400-500 participants from around the world. The RMC is the leading global event for the renewable carbon economy, showcasing the latest progress and outlook in bioeconomy, CCU and recycling for the defossilisation of chemicals and materials.

The deadline for submitting abstracts has passed. The Advisory Board has evaluated the nearly 100 submissions and the nova team has selected the first speakers for the preliminary programme (see below).

Deadline for the submission of your innovation for the Innovation Award “Renewable Material of the Year 2026“ (sponsored by Covestro) is 3 May 2026: https://renewable-materials.eu/award-application/

There are still some workshop slots available, which is a very attractive format for presenting and discussing your topics with other experts and potential clients. Please find more information here: https://renewable-materials.eu/workshops/

Further options to become part of the conference:

• Join as exhibitor: https://renewable-materials.eu/exhibition-booking/
• Become a sponsor of this outstanding conference: https://renewable-materials.eu/sponsoring/
• Register as participant and profit from 10% discount on the ticket until 16 August: https://renewable-materials.eu/registration/

Preliminary programme: the first 50 speakers have been announced

Day 1, 22 September 2026

Defossilisation of the Chemical Industry

• Lars Börger, nova-Institut (DE): Future of Renewable Chemistry
• Dorothée Arns, FECC (BE): The Chemical Value Chain in Europe – Today and Tomorrow
• Gabriela Fedor, Neste (FI): Under Pressure — Scaling Circular and Renewable Carbon for the Chemical Industry
• Doris De Guzman, Green D Market Analytics (US): Renewable Chemicals One Year Later: Geopolitics, Protectionism, and Supply-Chain Realignment
• Ann Zhang, Carbon Strategy (CN): Chemical Industrial Park’s Transition under The China’s 15th Five-Year Plan – A Case Study
• Jerry Luo, Leaf Bio (CN): Next-Gen Aromatics: Furan as a Bio-Based Platform
• Petri Mast, ETB Global BV (NL): Resilient and Renewable Industrial Technology for C4-Production: Bioethanol to Bio Butadiene
• Andreas Kohl, Verbio (DE): New Plant Oil Based Value Chains Enabled by Metathesis: The First-Of-Its-Kind Ethenolysis Plant and Outlook on What is Next
• Jean-Paul Lange, University of Twente (NL): Cellulosic Ethylene Glycol – Economic Potential, Contaminants and Process Concepts
• Valtteri Oksanen, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (FI): Production of Succinic and Adipic Acids from CO₂ and Ethylene via Electrochemical Carboxylation
• Sébastien Rifflart, Michelin Engineered Polymers (FR): New bio-based and non-toxic building-block molecules available at industrial scale
• Jörn Kiwitt, Evonik (DE): Building Resilience in the Chemical Industry – The Rheticus® Process and Renewable Carbon
• Martin Lindmeyer, YNCORIS (DE): DeMoBio – Decentralized Modular Biorefinery-Container: Decentralized Pretreatment of Lignocellulosic Residues – Process Concepts & Techno‑Economic Assessment
• Michael Carus, nova-Institut (DE) & Peter Leonhardt, Cargill (DE): Primary Biomass for Chemistry & Key Enabler of Europe’s Circular Bioeconomy Through Integrated Biorefineries

Fine Chemicals

• Jan Weernink, IFF (US): Designed Enzymatic Biomaterials (DEB™) a Versatile Technology Capable of Providing Functional Performance Coupled with Advanced Renewable Carbon

Lignin Utilisation

• Florian Diehl, UPM Biochemicals (DE/FI): UPM’s Lignin-based Materials: Driving Innovation and Sustainability
• Justine Charmillot, Bloom Biorenewables (CH): Preserving Nature’s Chemistry to Enable High-Performance Renewable Materials
• Balaji Sridharan, VITO (BE): Reductive Lignin Depolymerization: A Carbon Efficient Pathway towards Biomaterials and Green Chemicals
• Sari Rautiainen, VTT (FI): Higher Value from Lignins by Tuneable Depolymerisation

Day 2, 23 September 2026

Fossil-free Plastics

Bio-based and Bio-attributed Plastics

• Michael Carus, nova-Institut (DE): Renewable Polymers: Status and Outlook
• Martin Clemesha, Braskem Netherlands (NL): Bio-based Polyethyelene Success Story: History, Status and Outlook
• Geoffroy Delvinquier, FUTERRO (BE): PLA Success Story: History, Status and Outlook
• Pramod Shankar Kumbhar, Praj Matrix-R&D Center (IN): From HA( Hyaluronic acid) to PHA (Polyhydroxy alkanoate)
• Stefaan De Wildeman, B4Plastics (BE): Swap or Scrap – Making Europe’s New Biopolymers in its Existing Assets
• Paul Stockmann, Fraunhofer IGB (DE): Caramides – Monoterpene-based Polyamides Scaled for Fibres, Foams, and Cast Polyamides
• Marcus Elmer, Lixea Sweden (SE): High Performing Fibres from Annual Crops Through Ionic Liquid Fractionation
• Jan Harm Urbanus, TNO (NL): Advancing Fossil-Free Polymers Through AI-Powered Polymer Development
• Arthur Groh, KUORI (CH): A RMC Success Story – Biobased and Biodegradable Elastomers for Abrasion-Critical Applications

CO₂-based Plastics

• Nick Smith, ViridiCO₂ trading as Viridi (UK): New CO2-to-polymers catalysts made for the industry we have today
• Sergio Santos, TECNALIA Research & Innovation (ES): Plastics Sustainability: Synthesis of CO2- and Bio-based Polycarbonates and Polyurethanes

Recycled Plastics

• Delphine Largeteau, Schneider Electric (FR): Open, Software-defined Automation as a Catalyst for the Sustainable Carbon Industry
• Oliver Borek, Entzimatiko (ES): Converting Polyolefins into Monomeric Building Blocks using Enzymatic Machinery

Coating & Adhesives

• Thomas Lueder, Beckers Group (DE): How to Create a Pull for Renewable Coatings in the Construction Industry?
• Tim Kidd, Stahl (NL): Beyond the Surface: How Coatings Can Enable the Transition to Renewable Carbon
• Sarvesh Poddar, Sustanix Materialtech (NL): 100% Solid Bio-Coating System to Replace Water/Solvent Based PFAS & Acrylate Systems
• Michael Wilhelm, Henkel (DE): Fuelled by Data, Driven by Markets – Henkel Adhesive Technologies’ Renewable Carbon Pathway
• Sanjay Wahal, Decarbonization (US): Mycelium-Based Binders and Packaging Materials: High-Performance, Circular Alternatives for Hygiene and Spill-Control Applications

Day 3, 24 September 2026

Setting the Frame for Renewable Carbon

Creating Market Pull

• Tristan Brown, Molecule Group (US): An Industry-Driven Framework for Enhancing Sustainable Chemicals and Materials Market Access
• Ivana Krkljus, BASF (DE): A Demand-Pull Enabling Defossilisation of Europe’s Chemical Industry

Vision & Strategy

• Marc Borghans, ING Bank (NL): The Role of Finance: From Barrier to Enabler
• Volker Strauss, Umweltbundesamt (DE): A sustainable Chemicals Economy – a Common Vision and the Need for New Collaborative Approaches
• Malte Niebelschuetz, Brands 4 Change (DE): From Centralized Factory Hubs to Micro-Manufacturing, Rethinking Production for the Renewable Carbon Economy
• Michael Carus, nova-Institut (DE): Solar Energy and Renewable Chemistry

Biodegradation

• Theodora Nikolapoulou, European Commission (EU): Biodegradability in EU Products Legislation: Case Studies of Fertilising Products and Detergents
• Ferdinand Koch, Bündnis Mikroplastikfrei, VÖA (AT): Disposal – Overall Picture   
• Michael Sander, ETH Zürich (CH)
• Jessica Mugleston, BASF (DE): Digital Tools for Biodegradation
• John Ryan, Sinclair Industries (UK): Biodegradable Adhesives for Fruit Stickers
• Julie Capsalas, LACTIPS (FR): Enosis® by Lactips: Leveraging Biodegradability to Deliver High-Performance Bio-based Materials for Plastics Applications
• Ryan Simkovsky, Algenesis Labs (US): Biodegradation of Thermoplastic Polyester Polyurethanes Produces Microplastic-free, Plant-Enhancing Compost Under Home Composting Conditions  
• Patricia Schmidt, BASF (DE)
• Christian Lott, Hydra Marine Sciences (DE): Reducing Agriculture’s Plastic Footprint: The Role of Biodegradable Plastics
• Clayton Bunyard, Kimberley-Clark (US): The Way Towards Fully Biodegradable Hygiene Products          
• Rick Passenier, NGF Biobased Circular (NL): A Practice-Driven Biodegradation Innovation Cluster for Biopolyesters and Renewable Materials

Sponsors and Partners

The nova-Institute would like to thank UPM Biochemicals (FI) for supporting the conference as Platin Sponsor, Leaf Biotech (CN) and GS Biomats Co., ltd (CN) as Gold Sponsors, and Peterson Solutions GmbH (DE) and TÜV Austria Belgium as Silver Sponsor. The innovation award “Renewable Material of the Year 2026” is sponsored by Covestro (DE).

The Renewable Materials Conference is supported by industry and trade associations, non-profit organisations, research institutions and interest groups that are thematically linked to the conference: AVK (DE), BCNP (DE), C.A.R.M.E.N.(DE), ChemCologne (DE), Chemie Cluster Bayern (DE), CLIB (DE), CO2 Value Europe (EU), European Bioplastics (EU), IBB Netzwerk (DE), kunststoffland NRW (DE), NRW.Energy4Climate (DE), Plastics Europe (DE), Renewable Carbon Initiative (EU)

Source

nova-Institute, original text, 2026-04-08.

Supplier

Algenesis Materials
AVK – Industrievereinigung Verstärkte Kunststoffe e.V.
B4Plastics
BASF SE
BCNP Consultants
Beckers Group
Brands 4 Change
Braskem
bündnis mikroplastikfrei
C.A.R.M.E.N. e.V.
Cargill, Inc.
ChemCologne
Chemie Cluster Bayern CCP
Cluster Industrielle Biotechnologie e.V. (CLIB2021)
CO2 Value Europe
Covestro AG
Decarbonization, LLC
Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zürich)
Entzimatiko
ETB Global BV
European Bioplastics e.V.
European Commission
Evonik Industries AG
FECC
Fraunhofer-Institut für Grenzflächen- und Bioverfahrenstechnik (IGB)
Futerro
Green D Market Analytics (GDMA)
GS Biomats
Henkel KGaA
Hydra Marine Sciences GmbH
IFF Health & Biosciences
Industrielle Biotechnologie Bayern Netzwerk GmbH (IBB Netzwerk GmbH)
ING Bank
Kimberley-Clark
kunststoffland NRW e.V.
KUORI Materials
Lactips
Leaf Biotech
Lixea
MICHELIN
Molecule Group
Neste Corporation
NGF Biobased Circular
nova-Institut GmbH
NRW.Energy4Climate
Peterson Solutions GmbH
Plastics Europe
Praj Industries Ltd.
Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI)
Schneider Electric
Sinclair
Stahl International BV
Sustanix Materialtech BV
Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT)
Tecnalia Corp
TNO
TÜV AUSTRIA Belgium
University of Twente (NL)
UPM Biochemicals
VERBIO - Vereinigte BioEnergie AG
ViridiCO2
YNCORIS

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