PITTSBURGH—The ownership of Liberty Tire Recycling is moving from one private equity firm to another.
Pittsburgh-based Liberty Tire, which handles more than 190 million tires each year, is being sold to Energy Capital Partners (ECP), a Summit, N.J.-based equity firm, by Carlyle Group in a deal expected to close during the second quarter.
Financial terms are not being disclosed.
Liberty has been a major player in tire recycling starting in the business in 2000. The company has grown to include more than 25 processing plants and a nationwide collection network.
Among its holdings is Lakin Tire, an enterprise with the capacity to collect over 180 million tires and generate 2.6 billion pounds of recycled rubber products annually, which Liberty acquired in March 2020.
New York-based Carlyle has been Liberty’s “majority equity sponsor” since late 2017, the seller said.
“Liberty occupies a key position in the recycling industry and is part of a vital sustainability supply chain in North America," ECP Managing Partner Tyler Reeder said.
"As consumers and manufacturers commit to greener and more sustainable products and practices, Liberty’s ability to provide sustainable materials and solutions for a growing number of applications will only make the company a stronger and more sought-after partner.”
While in business for the past two decades, Liberty grew to national scope during Carlyle’s involvement.
“Carlyle’s investment thesis for Liberty centered on the Company’s attractive growth characteristics and the ability to create a national provider operating at the nexus of beneficial reuse and sustainable materials production,” Evan Middleton, co-head of North America for Carlyle Strategic Partners, said.
Carlyle is a private equity firm managing assets worth $246 billion. ECP — Energy Capital Partners Management L.P. — is smaller but concentrates efforts in the energy sector. A key market for used tires is tire-derived fuel.
