U.K. firm funding waste-tires-to-fuel project

LONDON — British fuel distributor Greenergy International Ltd. is planning to venture into the generation of low-sulfur "drop-in" fuels made from waste tires using pyrolysis technology from a Danish surface sciences company.

Greenergy has secured a site east of London for a processing plant that will convert waste tires into " low-carbon, low-sulfur drop-in fuels that can be blended into diesel and gasoline," the London-based companyy said, using "HydroFlex" technology from Haldor Topsoe A/S.

The project's initial phase will focus on setting up capacity to produce up to 300 metric tons of shredded tires per day that will then be processed into fuels. The plant still requires planning approval. Greenergy hopes to commercialize the site in 2025.

The new location at the Thames Enterprise Park in Stanford-Le-Hope, England, also will have the option to include a second plant to make aviation fuel using the same technology from Topsoe.

The companies did not disclose the project's value or projected investment.

Greenergy said this project "will be the first of its kind to use waste tires as feedstock for low-carbon, low-sulfur fuel production. The tires will be pyrolyzed to produce pyrolysis oil that can be catalytically converted into fuel using Topsoe's HydroFlex technology."

Along with creating fuels, the facility also will produce carbon black that can be used to make new tires and other rubber products.

"We have been exploring innovative ways to produce liquid fuels from different waste products to continue to create new forms of development fuels and deliver further carbon savings in the years ahead," Greenergy CEO Christian Flach said.

"This milestone for the project is a key part of our strategy to expand our industry-leading renewables business. Our customers will continue to benefit from our integrated approach to manufacturing and blending of renewable fuels,"

The project's conceptual design was developed in Canada by Green Tire Technology Ltd., and then implemented in the United Kingdom in partnership with Greenergy. The project will use thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions' advanced thermal treatment technology.

Fei Chen, senior vice president of fuels and chemicals technology at Haldor Topsoe, said the facility will be "the world's first commercial plant to produce low-carbon transportation fuels from waste tires."

Lyngby, Denmark-based Haldor Topsoe calls itself a "global leader in energy-efficient technologies to produce clean transportation fuels as well as ammonia, methanol and hydrogen."

Haldor Topsoe delivers a wide range of catalysts and process technology that is essential for producing clean fuels from crude oil and waste, removing harmful emissions from power plants and raising the efficiency of industrial processes.

The company uses catalysts and process technology to produce clean fuel from crude oil and waste. The company technology also is involved in the creation of fertilizers and fuels.