Pyrum Innovations to build JV tyre recycling plant in Greece

German pyrolysis technology specialist Pyrum Innovations AG and Greek firm Thermo Lysi SA have begun preliminary discussions about a new end-of-life tyre (ELT) recycling plant in Greece. Pyrum has agreed to carry out all the planning necessary to obtain the building permits required under Greek law for the new facility, which will be located around 85 miles (140 km) north of Athens.

The facility will have a capacity to process 20,000 tonnes of waste tyres annually and will therefore be able to accommodate almost half the approximately 45,000 tonnes of ELTs that Greece generates each year. Raw materials recovered from the ELTs include carbon black and oil.

“We are looking forward to realising this groundbreaking project in Greece together with Thermo Lysi SA,” states Pascal Klein, chief executive officer of Pyrum Innovations AG. “Commissioning the design and all the work necessary to obtain the building permit underlines the trust and commitment that Thermo Lysi SA has placed in us. Together we will examine the requirements for building a state-of-the-art recycling plant to address the challenges of waste tyre disposal in Greece and make an important contribution to the circular economy.”

Synergies with existing recycling plant

As part of its review, Pyrum has agreed to carry out the basic engineering and prepare parts of the approval documents for the new plant. A tyre recycling facility is already present at the site where the planned pyrolysis plant will be built, and Pyrum says this allows synergy effects to be used in the conception and future implementation of the new system. The site also offers sufficient space for future capacity expansion.

Although this project is the first for Pyrum Innovations outside Germany, the company has recently signed several letters of intent with various companies for joint projects. In addition, Pyrum has already begun preparing the approval documents for another facility of its own in Homburg, Germany, with construction scheduled to begin at the end of this year. In light of ongoing discussions, Pyrum anticipates that this project’s financing will be fully completed by the time the permit applications are submitted.