Thermoplastic manufacturer Borealis and aquacultural company AKVA Group designed what they say is the world’s first boat with a hull made of cooking oil-based plastic.

The workboat is part of AKVA Group’s Polarcirkel boats, which have been design to endure in extreme conditions, from -40°C in Arctic regions to +55°C in the tropics. To make the hull, they used Borealis’ ‘Bornewables’, which consist of renewable polyolefins, a family of thermoplastics that include polyethylene and polypropylene.

The polyolefins are derived from renewable sources such as used cooking oil, but offer the same performance as virgin, fossil-based plastics. The type of bioplastic they used is composed of 90 per cent renewable content. For every kilogram of polyolefin produced, this grade achieves an estimated reduction of 1.9kg of CO2 equivalent emissions when compared to a fossil-based equivalent.

Photos: AKVA Group