Fire breaks out at Contec tire pyrolysis plant in Poland

A major fire broke out at Contec's tire pyrolysis facility in Szczecin, Poland over the weekend, according to a LinkedIn post by the company's CEO/CTO, Krzysztof Wroblewski. No one was injured following the safe evacuation of all ten employees at the site, but the material damage to the plant was significant and production has been halted.

In the post, Mr. Wroblewski said:

Our full attention is now focused on our team, ensuring their well-being, our clients to help them find solutions, as well as assessing the situation and our post-incident operations. I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the incredible support and concern we have received. Your kindness means a great deal to us during this challenging time.

We are aware that this is a difficult situation not only for our company and shareholders but for the entire industry. We will provide updates regarding any impact on our operations on an individual basis as more information becomes available. Furthermore, we are committed to sharing our findings with others in the industry, as we believe that increasing safety standards benefits everyone.

The accident comes at a particularly unfortunate time as Warsaw-based Contec was preparing to more than double tire pyrolysis capacity at the Szczecin site through an expansion due on-stream this year. The company had announced a number of milestones, including a long-term supply agreement with Orion for tire pyrolysis oil. The TPO was to be used as the feedstock for Orion's circular carbon black. Contec S.A. is one of the leaders in the European pyrolysis sector, and the loss of this capacity is a serious blow to industry efforts to reach economies of scale for both recovered carbon black and TPO.