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WTO rules against
Brazil on used tyres

The World Trade Organization
(WTO) has ruled that Brazil must
import retreaded tyres from Europe
or close its markets entirely – includ-
ing to its partners in South
America’s Mercosur trade bloc.

Brazil banned imports of used
tyres in 2002 on the basis of the envi-
ronmental and health risks associat-
ed with the shorter life-span of
retreaded tyres, including a height-
ened threat from dengue fever owing
to scrap tyres offering breeding
grounds for mosquitoes. However,
Brazil has continued to import tyres
from Paraguay and Uruguay through
a decision of Mercosur’s Arbitration

Tribunal, and from other countries
through legal rulings obtained by
companies. This situation ultimately
led the EU to file a trade discrimina-
tion complaint with the WTO.

In 2001, a year before the ban was
adopted, EU exports to Brazil
totalled more than 7800 tonnes –
equivalent to more than 95% of the
retreaded tyres imported into the
South American country. By 2004,
EU exports had fallen to 373 tonnes,
or just over 16% of the total. Around
1000 Brazilian companies are
engaged in the retread industry, giv-
ing a second life to some 11 million
tyres each year.

Malaysian firm widens
tyre recycling presence

Malaysian company Octagon
Consolidated has signed heads of
agreement with KK Incinerator
Engineering & Construction Co Ltd
(KKIEC) of South Korea and
Canadian Carbon Converters LP
(CCC) covering the setting-up of a
joint venture company with the aim
of developing rubber and scrap tyre
pyrolysis projects in North America.

In a statement, Octagon says the
parties aim to become the dominant
player in North America through the
use of a more efficient, innovative
and environmentally-friendly tech-
nology. The joint venture will han-
dle the simultaneous roll-out of
three continuous-process pyrolysis
plants in North America, each with
a capacity of around 40 tonnes per
day. Estimated cost will be US$ 50
million (Euro 34 million).

Pyrolysis is the process of decom-
posing organic materials by heating
in the absence of oxygen. In view of
the huge potential of the North
American market, the joint venture
will have the potential to grow into a
company with a market capitalisa-
tion of US$ 1 billion over the next
five to seven years, according to
Octagon.

The signing ceremony was held in
conjunction with the launch of a 10-
tonnes-per-day continuous-process
pyrolysis plant at Busan in South
Korea, a project which is supported

by the Korean government. This
marks Octagon’s second overseas
venture after its subsidiary, Green
Energy and Technology Sdn Bhd
(GET), entered into an agreement to
design, engineer, construct, commis-
sion and operate a US$ 115 million
(Euro 78 million) waste-to-energy
plant with a capacity of 200 tonnes
per day for Sri Lanka’s Colombo
Renewable Energy (Private) Ltd.

www.octagon-consolidated.com

Octagon will bring scrap tyre pyrolysis to
North America

‘If you don’t drive your business,
you will be driven out of business.’

Quote ~ unquote

Tests for zinc dust
refining process

New technology pioneered in
Australia for refining scrap metal
waste is to be put to the test in
northern Tasmania. The Tasmanian
government has granted approval
for Sydney-based Intec Ltd to build a
plant at its Hellyer mill in Burnie to
refine zinc dust from the electric arc
furnace.

Construction will start in the first
half of this year and the project is due
to come on stream in 2009. Intec’s
Managing Director Phillip Wood com-
ments: ‘We are taking this industrial
waste and recycling it to produce zinc
product and totally stable residue. We
are producing a valuable product and
a completely safe residue, so it’s a
technology breakthrough which is
also making money.’

Mr Wood wants to export the
environmentally-friendly process to
other countries in the near future.
‘Obviously, we expect to be able to

take the technology far afield to
North America and Europe and
Eastern Asia in the next few years.’

Intec Hellyer Metals Pty Ltd is
also in the process of implementing
the first commercial project utilising
the Intec process – a patented
Australian hydrometallurgical tech-
nology for the recovery of base and
precious metals from a range of dif-
ferent feedstocks.

www.intec.com.au

Bulk zinc concentrate flotation at
the Intec Hellyer mill.

RI_012 NEWS:Opmaak 1 24-01-2008 09:25 Pagina 11