STOCKHOLM — Tire pyrolysis company Scandinavian Enviro Systems A.B. has laid plans to build 30 waste-tire recovery plants by 2030 and become a "leading player" in the recovered carbon black segment.
Stockholm-based Scandinavian Enviro disclosed the plans during a recent capital markets presentation about its 10-year growth strategy.
As part of the plan, Enviro envisions investing $1 billion over the coming decade to create annual recycling capacity of more than 900,000 metric tons of end-of-life tires (ELTs).
Enviro said it expects the facilities to generate sales of over $800 million and pre-tax operating earnings (EBITDA) of more than $415 million by 2030, CEO Thomas Soerensson said.
The plants do not include the Enviro-licensed factory under construction by Michelin Group in Mejillones, Chile, or "any other potential plants established by tire maker during the period," he said.
In the short term, Mr. Soerensson said Enviro is building up processes to enable the installation of multiple modularized units to raise recovery capacity of sites to up to 120,000 tons of scrapped tires.
Furthermore, the recycler said it was on track with plans to invest $46 million in its first proprietary full-scale plant, in Uddevalla, Sweden, with an initial annual capacity of 30,000 tons.
Set for completion in the fourth quarter of 2023, processing capacity at the factory is expected to double 60,000 tons per year in the long run.
"The dialogue with the relevant authorities is proceeding well," Mr. Soerensson said, adding Enviro expects to submit an application for an environmental permit for the Uddevalla unit in November.
Enviro is operating a pilot plant in Åsensbruk, Mellerud, with the nameplate annual capacity of 15,000 tons of waste tires.
The plant, Mr. Soerensson said, is not running at that rate but serves as a center for technology development, improvement and validation as well as material testing and development.
Also presenting at the virtual event, Enviro chairman Alf Blomqvist said Enviro aims to become a "leading player" in the recovered carbon black segment, expecting to achieve a market share of between 15% and 30% in the long-term.
According to the official, there are more than a billion scrap tires generated globally every year and the number is expected to grow by 4% to 5% per year, with growth particularly strong in developing countries, where a growing middle class is increasingly buying cars. Enviro noted that over 95% of all ELT tires end up as fuel.
At the same time, Enviro estimated that the value of the market for virgin carbon black amounts to about $2.8 billion and is increasing 9% per year, a condition that the Swedish firm said "makes it ripe for change."
The market for virgin carbon black is strongly consolidated, with the six largest tire makers controlling a market share of over 50%.
