Syngas / BB&G AWES
PARTNERSHIP
SYNGAS has forged a strategic and technical partnership with BB&G® Alternative Worldwide Environmental Solutions (AWES), a European environmental solutions company. BB&G® AWES is a global provider of innovative, economical, efficient, reliable, and eco-friendly advanced thermolysis technology. One of its many goals is to establish a leading presence in Africa. This will be neatly achieved by partnering with SYNGAS on this first plant. The project will spread African and global awareness of this ethical, environmentally-friendly, and yet highly profitable, end-of-life tyre technology.
The Syngas and BB&G®AWES African plant directly reflects the outcomes and intentions of the COP 27 climate change conference. It offers a natural, green solution to helping to solve the massive environmental challenge of dealing with the accumulated mountains of hazardous, discarded, end-of-life tyres (ELT) in Africa.
The Syngas and the BB&G® AWES’ South African plant will transform ELTs into valuable raw materials while tackling the ELT crisis head-on. Meanwhile, it will assist vulnerable industries – mainly those in the tyre and petroleum sectors – with the reduction of their carbon footprints, to help them to meet their goals of carbon neutrality.
PROJECT
The African Syngas BB&G® AWES plant will be constructed in Johannesburg, South Africa. Using the thermal decomposition of the rubber polymer contained in the tyre granulate, the plant will convert ELT feedstock to recovered carbon black (rCB1), hydro-carbon syngas and hydrocarbon oil.
Plant production downtime risk is to be eliminated through a contractual agreement with a privately-owned, liquid natural gas (LNG) pipeline. This will ensure that a steady, reliable supply of gas is available on-site as an energy backup. The gas supply will provide a robust alternative power source should Eskom, the South African national electricity supplier, fail to deliver sufficient and reliable electricity to the plant, and will be available throughout the lifetime of the plant.
This is a lucrative business opportunity across Africa where virtually no recovery and processing of ELTs takes place. In South Africa, less than 20% of its ELTs are recycled. In contrast, there are other parts of the world which recycle up to 100% of their ELTs. There will be an abundance of feedstock for the Johannesburg plant.
The timing of this unique African project is opportune. It brings an investment opportunity that is Africa-centric, impact-focused, and impact-motivated. The opportune timing in building the plant now is further enhanced by the target dates and goals set by the United Nations and international climate change mitigation accords. International tyre manufacturers are committed, as a result of these accords, to using recycled content (rCB1) in their new tyres. This will ensure a sustainable and growing demand for our materials. The local demand for green rCB1 substantially exceeds planned plant capacity. Target climate change deadlines will also help to underpin the Syngas BB&G® AWES South African product prices. Tyre manufacturers committed to recycled content include:
Bridgestone – 100% recycled/renewable materials by 2050 Continental – 100% recycled/renewable materials by 2050
Michelin – 80% recycled/renewable materials by 2048
Sumitomo – 20% recycled/renewable materials by 2025
INDICATIVE OPPORTUNITY OVERVIEW
SYNGAS BB&G® AWES PRODUCTS
Recovered carbon black (RCB)
High-quality recovered (green) Carbon Black (rCB1) will be manufactured.
High tensile steel
The steel, which comprises 10% to 15% of the composition of a tyre, is retrieved.
Bio-oil
Bio-oil with low sulphur content (below 1%) and carbon chains from 14 up to 33 will be produced. The oil has biogenic (brought about by living organisms) carbon content higher than 50%, thus being classified as a Bio-oil.
Fibres
Fibres are extracted from the textile component of the tyres during the shredding phase of the thermolysis process. Small volumes of fibres are produced, but various niche fibre markets do exist – for example in the cement industry.
Syngas
The thermolysis system is self-sustaining, as the syngas extracted from the tyres gets fed back into the system and this generates enough energy to keep the plant operational.
The products produced at the plant will be marketed to South African and international tyre manufacturing facilities, with opportunities for expansion. Additional markets for wide-ranging industrial applications also exist. Just to mention a few, there is the manufacture of conveyor belts, the moulding of plastic components for the motor industry, and the manufacture of printer ink.
This will be a pioneering project for the African market, serving a growing market against limited competition. Consequently, a high return on investment, good profit margins and a relatively short payback period (for a project of this size) is expected.
The plant will use a process called thermolysis, also referrd to as pyrolysis, which involves chemically decomposing organic materials at elevated temperatures, and in the absence of oxygen. The process typically occurs at temperatures above 430°C (800°F) and under pressure. It simultaneously involves physical phase and chemical composition changes of the input. The word pyrolisys is coined from Greek-derived elements pyro, “fire” and lysis, “separating”.
The process breaks down the molecular bonds in rubber products, such as used tyres, reducing them to their base components; namely carbon black, bio-oil and hydrocarbon vapour (syngas). The off-gas system processes the vapour to recover the oil, and then treats and scrubs the remaining gas for use in the power generation system that runs the plant. Carbon and oil are collected and processed as raw materials for use in different industries.
The advanced BB&G® AWES thermal processing technologies convert scrap tyres, waste plastics and wood into domestic energy and sustainable commodities. The new plant will focus on recycling waste rubber and used tyres into valuable by-products. These will, in turn, be used to manufacture new products in an environmentally friendly manner.
THE MARKET
The major tyre manufacturers Bridgestone, Sumitomo and Continental have expressed a very strong interest, both locally and internationally, in the rCB1.
Petrochemicals and energy group Sasol South Africa is interested in the bio-oil offtake and is currently conducting internal testing of the samples provided by the BB&G plant in Portugal. The plant in South Africa will undertake to deliver bio-oil of the same quality, as it will be deploying the same technology.
GALP and BASF have approved the bio-oil and have agreed to accept offtakes once the plant is in production. Orion Engineering has expressed interest in both the rCB1 as a blend with virgin carbon black, and in purchasing the bio-oil to support its objectives to supply a green and environmentally friendly carbon black.
Both Wolfersdorff Consulting with rCB1, and the Alpen Group with bio-oil, are working with BB&G® AWES and have other potential outlets/customers in South Africa and abroad.
ESSENTIAL BENEFITS FOR SYNGAS THROUGH THE BB&G® AWES PARTNERSHIP:
Cutting-edge and proven technology will be supplied and installed by this European leader in the recovered-carbon-black (rCB1) and bio-oil industries.
No hazardous emissions are produced throughout the closed extraction process. Conventional virgin-carbon-black, oil and gas production globally, produces up to ten times more CO2e compared to the BB&G® AWES processing plant
Lower CO2 emissions allow for the creation of carbon compensation credits, because of the CO2 emissions that are avoided. This potentially represents an additional revenue source, which has not been factored into the financial projections. It can help the plant to achieve a net zero target and gives this project a substantial head-start on all competitors producing Carbon Black via conventional methods. The plant will make use of the Impact Energy Solutions and S10X carbon credit financing model, which will be implemented from the time of commencement of the plant build. S10X enables the creation of high-quality fungible carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market that meet the globally mandated standards.
OVERALL BENEFITS OF THE INVESTMENT:
The BB&G® AWES plant will operate a fully clean, green process, producing no residual waste, with an unusually low carbon footprint.
There will be almost no noise pollution due to the energy self-sufficiency of the plant, where syngas is channelled back constantly, to drive the process throughout the closed system. The modular design and low-cost build of the first African BB&G® AWES plant, together with the benefits of the Global Impact Holdings AMC funding mechanism, will make this African waste-to-bio-oil project very profitable, scalable, and capable of being replicated elsewhere in Africa.
A full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was conducted and approved on the land that is to be secured for this initial project. The technology, plant build and systems to be implemented comply with the guidelines of the “Paris Climate Accords” as adopted in 2015 by 191 countries:
https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement.
Global Peaking and ‘Climate Neutrality’ and Mitigation, in terms of Article 4.
To achieve certain climate change mitigation goals, the signatories of The Climate Accord aim to reach a global peak in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) as soon as possible The accord recognizes that reaching target ceilings will take longer for developing countries. The Paris Agreement established binding commitments for all countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and governments are expected to implement domestic measures to achieve their goals. It also prescribes that Parties shall communicate their NDCs every 5 years and provide sufficient information for clarity and transparency. To set a firm foundation for higher ambition, each successive NDC will represent a progression beyond the previous one and should reflect the highest possible ambition. Developed countries are expected to take the lead through achieving their NDC emission reduction targets as soon as possible. Developing countries are also expected to meet their emission reduction targets but have some latitude to take into account different national circumstances.
THE APPOINTMENT OF GLOBAL IMPACT HOLDINGS PTY LTD (GIH)
Global Impact Holdings is appointed as the Product Manager in the Syngas Swiss AMC. GIH is also responsible for overseeing all Distribution Agents.
THE SCOPE OF THE APPOINTMENT
Global Impact Holdings (Pty) Ltd shall manage the AMC Product and shall be remunerated in respect thereof during the Product’s lifetime, according to the parameters defined by the Issuer, the Term Sheet and any documents supplementing the Term Sheet.
Global Impact Holdings (Pty) Ltd may be referred to in the Term Sheet as the Strategy Manager. GIH will ensure that the Strategy, the Investment Strategy, the Strategy Guidelines, Investment Restrictions, and the Investment Universe as defined in the Term Sheet reflect an adequate distribution of risk (adequate diversification principle).
STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION IN RESPECT OF THE PRODUCT
The Strategy Implementation actions and tasks are defined by and follow from the Strategy and Strategy rebalancing. GIH will conduct the Strategy Implementation in the name of the Issuer, for the Issuer’s account and at the Issuer’s risk. The Issuer will provide GIH with all the documentation and information necessary to carry out the Appointment. GIH shall use all documents and information provided to it by the Issuer exclusively in a legally permissible manner. GIH is obliged to observe and comply with the relevant product-specific regulations and possible restrictions under any applicable laws when distributing marketing and other materials.
OBLIGATIONS AND DUTY OF CARE - GLOBAL IMPACT HOLDINGS (PTY) LTD
In respect of the Appointment, GIH, always has a duty of loyalty, trust, due care, and diligence, and undertakes to protect the interests of the Issuer. In the performance of this duty, GIH takes into consideration the best interests of the holders of the Product (investors), the Distribution Agents and other involved parties. GIH also has a duty to keep the Issuer and other involved parties informed about any material events.
GIH shall take appropriate organisational measures to prevent conflicts of interest from arising between itself and the Issuer, the holder of the Product and/or the paying agent (together referred to as the “Related Parties”). Where a conflict of interest still arises, or threatens to arise, GIH shall notify the Related Parties and immediately and proactively mitigate any negative consequence.
GIH confirms that it has the necessary expertise to always meet its obligations and corresponding tasks, and will carry out such tasks in accordance with the documents, rules and concepts referred to in these Terms and Conditions and applicable Product documentation, including the Term sheet, as well as with the provisions of the law, where applicable, including (but not limited to) the provisions of the Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act, the Swiss Federal Act on Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, the Swiss Financial Services Act, the Swiss Financial Institutions Act and the Swiss Financial Market Infrastructure Act (in each case including the ordinances adopted thereunder), as well as with the latest version of the “FAQs Structured Products” document issued by the FINMA, and such equivalent law, rule or regulation of the jurisdiction of, or otherwise applying to, GIH and its activities.
GIH is permitted to engage third parties to perform certain activities or tasks on its behalf. In making such an engagement, GIH shall ensure proper instruction, monitoring and control of the third party. GIH’s liability under the Appointment will not diminish when delegating or outsourcing services to third parties.
NON-EXCLUSIVITY
The Appointment of Global Impact Holdings (Pty) Ltd as the Product Manager does not create an exclusive business relationship between the Parties. The right of GIH to render its services in relation to any product issued by a person other than the Issuer is not limited. Nor has the Issuer any rights in relation to any such services related to a product issued by a third party. The Issuer has the right to perform in its own or to provide a mandate to a person other than GIH to provide services in respect of a product issued by the Issuer other than the Syngas Product, including (but not limited to) a product, similar to the Syngas Product. GIH has no rights in relation to such services performed by the Issuer or by a third party. Nor does GIH have any rights to any portion of the earnings made by the Issuer from the product or project in question or to a portion of the fees owed to the third party.
APPLICABLE SOUTH AFRICAN LEGISLATION
There are several important regulatory compliance requirements that the Syngas plant must meet. The various government departments such as the Department of Trade and Industry and Department of Labour oversee a number of regulatory bodies that monitor business activity with support for consumer and labour protection. Syngas will work hand-in-hand with the government to achieve its mandate of providing sound, coherent, predictable, and transparent business regulatory outcomes. Some of these regulatory measures are overseen by tribunals and commissions. They include the following:
- The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission
- The National Consumer Tribunal
- The National Competition Commission
- The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)
- The National Financial Reporting Standard Council