Scandinavian Enviro Systems (Enviro) has shared a progress update for the Infiniteria tyre recycling plant in Sweden, whose construction it is managing and coordinating. According to Enviro, the project is “progressing well” and the site in Uddevalla is now ready for the installation of production equipment.
There’s no doubt that tyre makers are finding sustainable raw materials increasingly attractive, but the road to monetising such a product can be long and frustrating. Pyrum Innovations has been actively developing its thermolysis technology for 16 years now, and during this time attracted the attention and favour of major tyre industry players. This hasn’t prevented the Dillingen, Germany-based company from posting another net loss in the first nine months of 2024.
It may be behind schedule, but Bolder Industries is pressing ahead with plans to set up a pyrolysis facility in Antwerp for obtaining raw materials from end-of-life-tyres, and its efforts have been given a boost in the form of a 32 million euro grant by the European Commission through the EU Innovation Fund pilot programme. This is further supplemented by a 2 million euro grant from Belgium’s Flanders region. The funding will enable the construction of Bolder’s European facility at the Port of Antwerp, a plant capable of recycling over four million end-of-life tyres annually.
Japanese general trading company Marubeni Corporation has announced its investment in Thailand-based waste tyre pyrolysis recycler Green Rubber Energy Company Limited (GRE). By investing in this venture, Marubeni intends to establish a tyre recycling supply chain in Thailand that encompasses the collection of end-of-life tyres and the production and sale of recycled materials such as recovered carbon black and tyre pyrolysis oil. Marubeni has not disclosed the size of its investment in GRE.
A new agreement between Bridgestone EMEA, Grupo BB&G and Versalis (Eni) will see the three parties working together to establish a closed-loop ecosystem to transform end-of-life tyres (ELTs) into new tyres, with each contributing its particular innovation, experience and technological skills to the project. The partnership aims to develop a model for the creation of a scalable and increasingly sustainable supply chain.
Scandinavian Enviro Systems (Enviro) has announced a significant achievement in its joint venture project with the receipt of SEK 25.6 million (£1.9 million) as compensation for meeting a predefined milestone linked to the construction of its recycling plant in Uddevalla, Sweden. This compensation, which comprises equal parts cash and shares in the joint venture company, marks the first of several planned disbursements tied to the project’s progress. Enviro has also published its financial results for H1 2024.
End-of-life tyre recycler Pyrum Innovations AG has published its Q1 2024 interim consolidated report. Sales revenues in the first three months of 2024 amounted to €336,000, around 54 per cent higher than the same period last year. The company also reports that expansion of its main plant in Dillingen, Germany is progressing as planned.
Pyrum Innovations views the commissioning of reactor 2 (TAD 2) at its main Dillingen/Saar site in Germany as a “new milestone,” and test runs of TAD 2 have resulted in the production of around 60,000 litres of pyrolysis oil, with the first delivery of 24,000 litres earmarked for BASF. Rigorous testing and sampling confirm that the oil meets all required specifications, paving the way for future deliveries.
Pyrum Innovations confirms it will begin construction of its second wholly owned end-of-life tyre recycling facility in the second half of this year. At a meeting on 6 February, the local council of Perl in Germany’s Saarland region overwhelmingly approved the project. Pyrum has taken initial steps by ordering the first components for the plant and has recently established a subsidiary dedicated to its operation, Pyrum GreenFactory II GmbH.
Pyrum Innovations is working to bring two new reactors into operation at its main Dillingen plant in Germany’s Saarland, trebling the facility’s capacity. It began a second test run of the first of these, reactor 2 (TAD 2), on 30 January and reports “initial successes” towards the reactor’s commissioning.
Pyrum Innovations has dropped plans to build a pyrolysis tyre recycling plant at Homburg, in Germany’s Saarland – but is still confident of setting up its second facility within the originally-announced timeframe, more or less. The company has already identified a potential new location.
A scientific study conducted by researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute highlights the CO2 savings the pyrolysis process offers over conventional means of tyre recycling. Titled ‘A comparative life cycle assessment of tyre recycling using pyrolysis compared to conventional end-of-life pathways’, the study contrasts Pyrum Innovations’ pyrolysis process against three other end-of-life tyre disposal methods.
Pyrum Innovations has produced the first batch of pyrolysis oil in one of the two new reactors it has installed at its main facility in Germany. Although the Pyrum team has only made “small quantities” of oil so far, this marks a further step towards volume production.
Pyrum Innovations is bringing its pyrolysis-based tyre recycling technology to the UK in partnership with SUEZ recycling and recovery UK Ltd. The two companies have entered into a one-year exclusivity agreement for a facility with three pyrolysis reactors that can process approximately 20,000 tonnes of end-of-life tyres annually. During the year SUEZ will determine the plant’s location and, with support from Pyrum, begin and finance the approval process.
Following twelve months of technology appraisals, meetings with platform developers, due diligence, and alignment of vision and fit, Australia’s Triskel Group has selected end-of-life tyre (ELT) recycling technology from UK firm Carlton Forest Group. This partnership will result in a pyrolysis plant being built in Brisbane, with a further five plants following in the next five years.
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