Firm imports used tyres for fuel

According to a recent report by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), the import and recycling of used rubber and auto tyres for Chu Lai-Indevco’s North Chu Lai Industrial Zone factory in the central province of Quang Nam has generated the company about VND700 billion ($32 million) in profits after three years of implementation.

From 2013-2015, the company imported 271,000 tonnes of used auto tyres and rubber. Of this, 166,000 tonnes were put into production, while the remaining 105,000 tonnes are still kept in stock.

During this three-year period, the company also utilised 162,000 tonnes of locally-sourced used tubes and tyres to feed production.

Chu Lai-Indevco was reported to have collected FO-R oil, powder coal, and steel scraps through pyrolysis of the used products, gathering about 80,000 tonnes of FO-R oil from both imported and locally sourced rubber.

This helped the company save around VND500 billion ($23 million) compared to importing FO-R oil for production.

Along with these savings, by selling the powder coal and steel scraps resulting from the pyrolysis process, the company recouped VND145 billion ($6.6 million) and VND60 billion ($2.75 million) of its costs, respectively.

Recycling used rubber into fuel for production was handled at Chu Lai-Indevco’s rubber and plastic recycling plant based in Nho Quan district in the northern province of Ninh Binh.

The plant reports a daily capacity of 485 tonnes per day, equal to 180,000 tonnes per year. According to the MoST, the factory complies with environmental standards while providing jobs to on-site labourers.

Due to the pilot programme’s positive results, Chu Lai-Indevco has lodged a proposal seeking permission to continue importing used rubber and tyres for production at a volume of 130,000 tonnes per year until the end of 2021, to offset a shortage in locally-sourced material.

The proposal was supported by relevant government management agencies (the MoST and the Ministry of Industry and Trade), and the localities that host the company’s manufacturing plants.

Earlier, through Document 679/2013/TTg-KTN, the government green-lighted the company’s import of 160,000 tonnes of used tubes and tyres for three years (2013-2015) to recycle into fuel serving its glass production.

In fact, used materials such as auto engines, accessories, tubes and tyres, tractors, and motorbikes were included in the list of products prohibited from import under governmental Decree 187/2013/ND-CP, which lists goods banned for export from or import into Vietnam in the Commercial Law.

Decree 187 stipulates that used tyres for temporary import and re-export can be kept in Vietnam no more than 60 days and may undergo two extensions, each not surpassing 30 days.

To restrict individuals and organisations from transporting waste and used materials into Vietnam, the Ministry of Finance required the Ministry of Industry and Trade to review temporary import and re-export activities, particularly those of used tyres and tubes, and consider putting these products in the list of commodities whose import and re-export should be temporarily stopped.