The Chilean government announced in a press release the inauguration of the world’s first plant specialized in recycling giant mining tires. It is the Michelin Specialty Materials Recovery (MSNR) La Negra, installed in the commune of Antofagasta and operated by the renowned French multinational Michelin.
With this initiative, the company strengthens its role within the National Association of the Recycling Industry and positions itself as the only tire manufacturer that assumes the role of a valorizer in the country, aligning itself with the requirements of the Extended Producer Responsibility Law (REP).
About the new mining tire recycling plant
The center has the initial capacity to process 2,200 industrial tires per year, although the projection is to scale up to 7,000 units as its development progresses. This effort will transform waste into renewable and recyclable raw materials and will boost a labor ecosystem in northern Chile, generating 20 direct jobs and more than 100 indirect jobs.
The REP Law, enacted in 2016, imposes specific collection and recovery targets on companies for priority products such as tires. Since 2023, these targets are binding, obliging companies to ensure the collection, transportation and treatment of waste throughout the national territory through collective or individual management systems.
For Kamal Abi Farag, MSNR representative, this type of investment reflects the commitment to promote a circular value chain within the mining industry, contributing to the reincorporation of end-of-life tires into the production cycle.
This initiative is part of the circular economy model. circular economy that Chile seeks to consolidate, making the country a benchmark in environmental innovation applied to strategic sectors such as mining, one of the pillars of national production.
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Source and internal photo: Government of Chile
Main photo: shutterstock
