A Norwegian company building a waste tyre recycling plant in the North East says it has created a complete supply chain for used tyres, following an agreement to sell one of its main products.
Wastefront AS was co-founded in Oslo four years ago by former Sunderland University student Christian A. Hvamstad, amid moves to create useful commodities for manufacturing industries from old tyres. It has unveiled plans to launch its first plant at Port of Sunderland, which could process around 80,000 tonnes of tyres per year when it is at full capacity.
Now the firm has announced its latest agreement which it says will achieve a fully circular supply chain for the UK’s end-of-life tyres. The deal sees Weber & Schaer, one of Europe’s largest distributors of products for the rubber industry, sign a strategic offtake and on-sale agreement for Wastefront’s Recovered Carbon Black (rCB). The firm will take a minimum of 35% of the rCB produced at Wastefront’s £100m Sunderland plant, with the opportunity to further scale up in the future.
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Wastefront bosses said that, by manufacturing renewable fuels from end-of-life tyres and rCB to produce new tyres, alongside the rubber and plastic products produced by Weber & Schaer’s clients, the company’s mission to create a green global industrial platform is now close to complete.
Weber & Schaer specialises in rubber, carbon black, plastic and adhesives distribution and has nine warehouses in Europe - in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain - ensuring Wastefront’s solution benefits the global circular economy as it expand into new markets and increases capacity. The domestic production of rCB is vital given the EU sanctions limiting imports of carbon black from Russia.
Wastefront has signed a number of agreements to develop a new, global circular supply chain, including an agreement in 2020 with energy and commodities company Vitol for a 10-year offtake agreement for the production of liquid hydrocarbons and certain non-liquid products, and in 2022 with French engineering and technology company Technip Energies, as its engineering, procurement and construction partner for the Sunderland plant buildout.
Additional agreements have been signed with Gateway Resources and with UK-based electric vehicle tire manufacturer ENSO, to provide a recycling outlet for its used tyres.
Vianney Vales, CEO of Wastefront, said: “Our agreement with Weber & Schaer is a decisive step towards our goal of ending the pollution caused by End of Life Tyres, through the creation of a circular economy.
“In times of unrest in Europe where the historic supply chain of rCB has been challenged, this agreement gives the UK a world leading position in the supply of rCB as well as in solving this waste issue. We are proud to be at the forefront of such an industrial revolution. This deal is a game changing agreement for us as we build out our green global industrial platform.”
René Marc Weber, managing partner of Weber & Schaer, added: “We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Wastefront towards the distribution of recovered carbon blacks in Europe. This newly formed alliance represents a huge milestone for us as we continue to focus on environmental sustainability. As a leader in the rubber industry distribution, our commitment to sustainable solutions aligns with our partners’ approach, and we believe that together we can make a significant impact towards a greener future creating value from end of life tires. Our new partnership will enable us to further improve our eco-friendly product offerings, incorporating innovative technologies to reduce the environmental footprint of our customers’ rubber products.”
Wastefront is also carrying out key research and development initiatives with partners including Hulteberg and Newcastle University to further optimise its processes.
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