News - 2025

Tokyo (30 January, 2025) -- Bridgestone has announced plans to construct a pilot demonstration plant for precise pyrolysis^*1 of end-of-life tires at its plant in Seki City, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. The plant will start operating in 2027 with an aim to realize horizontal recycling of tires. The facility will demonstrate the technology needed for establishing and optimizing precise pyrolysis of end-of-life tires, which involves obtaining tire-derived oil and recovered carbon black from end-of-life tires. In demonstrating this technology, Bridgestone aims to help accelerate the social implementation of chemical recycling technology. This project is part of the company's exploratory business for "Sowing New Seeds" in its Mid Term Business Plan (2024-2026) for sustainable growth in the future.

Since 2022, Bridgestone has been advancing its efforts in chemical recycling of end-of-life tires to help realize a circular economy. In 2023, the company introduced a test unit at the Bridgestone Innovation Park (BIP) in Kodaira City, Tokyo^*2, and it has been further developing technology to obtain tire-derived oil and recovered carbon black through testing precise pyrolysis of end-of-life tires. The oil is refined to produce chemical products, such as butadiene, a raw material of synthetic rubber. This creates the possibility of reusing and recycling the oil and the recovered carbon black as raw materials of tires.

The new pilot demonstration plant will implement the foundational technology of precise pyrolysis demonstrated at the test unit of BIP. Bridgestone aims to establish scale-up technologies for mass production of tire-derived oil and recovered carbon black by applying stable and continuous operational processes and quality management. Bridgestone will also further promote knowledge creation for plant operations and talent development with expertise in chemical recycling.

The construction of this pilot demonstration plant is one of the Research & Development (R&D) projects selected by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) in the "Development of Chemical Manufacturing Technology from Used Tires" under the "Green Innovation Fund Project / Development of Technology for Producing Raw Materials for Plastics Using CO₂ and Other Sources" in February 2022. It is also part of a joint project with ENEOS Corporation (ENEOS) ^*3. The recovered carbon black obtained at the pilot demonstration plant will be utilized for developing technology that can produce eco Carbon Black (eCB™^*4) with rubber reinforcement properties equivalent to those of virgin carbon black that is derived from petroleum and coal. These research efforts are part of the separate R&D project "Technology Development for Carbon Recycling from Polymer Products Including End-of-Life Tires" that is being conducted by Tokai Carbon Co., Ltd. and was selected by NEDO in December 2024^*5.

Bridgestone continues to advance activities for its EVERTIRE INITIATIVE^*6, which is designed to commercialize the recycling business to "renew" tires to rubber and other raw materials through co-creation with various partners. Through this co-creation with partners, Bridgestone strives to achieve "Ecology: Committed to advancing sustainable tire technologies and solutions that preserve the environment for future generations" and "Energy: Committed to the realization of a carbon neutral mobility society" described in its corporate commitment, the "Bridgestone E8 Commitment." ^*7

Setting forth the vision of "Toward 2050, Bridgestone continues to provide social value and customer value as a sustainable solutions company," Bridgestone links its business to the realization of carbon neutrality, a circular economy, and nature positivity across the entire value chain. From the "produce and sell" phase and the "use" of its products through to their "renewal" to raw materials, Bridgestone aims to build a foundation for creating sustainability value.

1. Pyrolysis is a method of heating compounds in an oxygen-free environment to produce or reclaim the original materials of the compounds. In the precise pyrolysis of tires, by controlling detailed conditions such as temperature and time, end-of-life tires are heated in an oxygen-free state to efficiently produce high-quality oil (tire-derived oil) and carbon black. This process contributes to increased material circularity and reduction of CO₂ emissions.
2. 2023/06/08 Bridgestone Commences Pyrolysis Test of Used Tire Recycling
3. 2022/02/18 Bridgestone and ENEOS Launch Joint Project Focused on Producing Tire Raw Materials from Used Tires
4. "eCB™" is a trademark pending registration by Tokai Carbon Co., Ltd. TM marked brands used with but also without corresponding application or registration.
5. 2025/01/27 Joint Project Launched to Advance Performance Properties and Production of Recovered Carbon Black
6. For more information, please refer to EVERTIRE INITIATIVE.
7. The Bridgestone Group established its corporate commitment, the "Bridgestone E8 Commitment," to help it realize its vision: "Toward 2050, Bridgestone continues to provide social value and customer value as a sustainable solutions company." This commitment will serve as the Group's axis to drive management while earning the trust of future generations. The "Bridgestone E8 Commitment" consists of eight uniquely Bridgestone values starting with the letter "E" (Energy, Ecology, Efficiency, Extension, Economy, Emotion, Ease, and Empowerment) that the Group will commit to creating through distinctly Bridgestone purposes and processes, together with employees, society, partners, and customers to help realize a sustainable society.