Nokian Tyres has signed a development agreement with a Swedish biomaterial science company Reselo AB to develop their renewable material Reselo Rubber as a potential new raw material in tyres. Source: Timberbiz
Reselo Rubber is a completely renewable material made from birch bark sourced from the residue of the global pulp, paper and plywood industry. The aim of the cooperation agreement now signed is to develop the material further to adapt it for commercial tyre production.
“According to the initial laboratory tests we have conducted on Reselo Rubber, it has great potential to replace traditional fossil-based materials in tyres. Furthermore, the material is not only renewable, but we believe it may also be used to improve the tyre’s performance features. We are excited to develop it further in cooperation with Reselo and hope to have Reselo Rubber in Nokian Tyres tires in the future,” Heini Siekkinen, Senior Manager, Research & Sustainability from Nokian Tyres said.
Reselo was the winner of Nokian Tyres’ FAST RACE, BIG CHANGE sustainable tyre innovation challenge that aimed to find new solutions for more sustainable tyres.
After the preliminary testing, the potential of Reselo Rubber as a possible tyre material was established, and now the co-operation continues in close collaboration to further develop the material to match demanding tire properties in an industrial scale.
“We are proud and excited to join forces with Nokian Tyres to improve the sustainability of the largest rubber industry segment even further. The partnership with Nokian Tyres marks an important milestone in our ambition to revolutionize the rubber industry with a high performing bio-based rubber,” Henrik Otendal, CEO and one of the founders of Reselo said.
One of Nokian Tyres’ most important sustainability goals is to have 50% of the raw materials in its tyres renewable or recycled by 2030, and the company has reached several milestones recently.
In June 2024, the company demonstrated the usability of of UPM BioMotion, a groundbreaking new renewable material in tires by presenting the concept tyre Nokian Tyres Green Step Ligna.
In August 2024, Nokian Tyres announced that their factory in Nokia, Finland has obtained the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) PLUS. With the certification, Nokian Tyres is able to introduce new sustainable, ISCC PLUS certified raw materials in its tyres.
