DUESSELDORF, Germany—Dutch tire recycler Black Bear Carbon has formed a strategic partnership with MMEC Mannesmann to help accelerate the rollout of the tire recycling company's technology.
Through the agreement, MMEC will engineer, procure and construct Black Bear's recovered carbon black facilities. The initial focus will be on previously identified sites together with partners inside Europe.
Given MMEC's strong presence in the Middle East, this region will also be on the map for Black Bear facilities in the future.
Based in Nederweert, Netherlands, Black Bear has developed a technology with a unique carbonization process to produce recycled carbon black from end-of-life tires.
In a series of fund-raising rounds last year, Black Bear announced ambitious plans to scale up its technology by setting up tire recovery plants in Europe and the Middle East.
The company currently operates an industrial-scale prototype plant, which can process more than 1 million tires annually.
"Black Bear's proven technology is highly promising," Johann-Georg Rathgeb, head of technologies at MMEC Mannesmann, said in a statement. "Considering the lessons learned of their first industrial-sized pilot plant and despite the fire that happened in early February, we are convinced that together we can realize state-of-the-art plants across the globe."
The partnership with MMEC, according to Black Bear, will be "a game-changer" in the company's time-to-market.
"Bundling ourselves with MMEC's expertise and resources will set a high pace in our global rollout," Black Bear CEO Martijn Lopes Cardozo said.