Pirelli launches a new eco-project

Companies Pirelli, Pyrum, Synthos, and BASF are jointly implementing a project in Europe aimed at promoting the use of raw materials derived from recycled tyres. As part of the initiative, used tyres are collected across Germany—including at outlets of the Driver retail network (owned by Pirelli) and at motorsport events—and combined with end-of-life tyres from the Pirelli plant in Breuberg. These are then processed into secondary raw materials such as synthetic rubber certified under the ISCC Plus environmental standard. This ensures traceability of the materials throughout the entire supply chain and enables their use in the production of new Pirelli tyres "while maintaining the highest standards of quality and performance."

Tyres that have reached the end of their service life are processed using Pyrum's proprietary pyrolysis technology—high-temperature decomposition of materials in the absence of oxygen—yielding two valuable raw materials: recovered technical carbon (rCB) and pyrolysis oil (TPO). The rCB undergoes a quality enhancement process and is supplied to Pirelli’s European plants, where it partially replaces virgin technical carbon. The TPO is used by BASF in combination with fossil-based feedstock to produce chemical products such as butadiene and styrene, which Synthos then uses to manufacture synthetic rubber for incorporation into new tyres.

According to Pirelli, “this project clearly demonstrates that true product circularity cannot be achieved by any single company alone.” “Industrial ecosystems must be created, bringing together partners with complementary expertise, each contributing at different stages of the process,” the company states.

Pirelli describes the European project as the largest initiative of its kind in the world to date, one that “demonstrates how end-of-life tyres can become a valuable resource within a structured production cycle.”