UK group breaks ground on commercial-scale tire pyrolysis plant

Worksop, UK – UK logistics and warehousing specialist Carlton Forest Group is building a new tire pyrolysis plant in Worksop, in the east Midlands of England, as part of its sustainability drive. 

The group broke ground on the site in July and has invested over £5 million (€5.8 million) in research & development in this area since 2018, it told ERJ in a written statement 9 July. 

Under the group's patented design, the plant will have a modular layout with each reactor module recovering 4 million litres of oil and 2.5 kilotonnes of carbon char from 7.5 kilotonnes from end-of-life tire crumb.

The group did not specify how many reactors the facility will include.

The oil produced by the facility can be directly blended with marine oil (sulphur 1.2% max), and the char provides a green alternate to coal/coke, the group told ERJ.

“Equipment has already begun arriving on site, with the final pieces arriving and being commissioned in preparation for the ribbon-cutting in October,” said the company statement.

Described as "the UK's only one of its type", the new tire recycling plan is part of Carlton Forest’s renewables division, which will be led by new managing director Scott Robson.

Prior to the new role, Robson served as the group’s finance director and is an experienced finance and management. 

“I am thrilled to be getting more hands on with one of the most exciting projects our group has ever had – developing our first commercial scale pyrolysis plant,” he said in a 30 June statement. 

This, he said, is a “crucial step” in the group’s strategy to supply ‘green oil’ from end-of-life tires to the UK market.