Tatneft, MOL to build rubber bitumen plant in Russia 

Nizhnekamsk, Russia – Russia’s Tatneft and Hungarian energy group MOL have agreed to build a joint venture rubber bitumen plant at Tatneft’s Taneco refinery and petrochemical complex, in Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan.

The Rub1.2 billion (€13.7 million) project, to be 51% owned by MOL, will employ MOL’s patented technology to produce “high-quality” road surface materials, using up to 500,000 end-of-life tires per year. 

The plant is expected to produce 25 kilotonnes per annum (ktpa) of rubber bitumen and is scheduled for start-up in mid-2023.

MOL launched its first commercial-scale rubber bitumen plant at its Zala Site, in western Hungary, last October.

The rubber bitumen, according to MOL, will be used as raw materials for road construction, with 20 kilotonnes enough for building a new 2x1 lane 200km highway.