News

Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. is pleased to announce that it adopted sustainable carbon black for some racing tires as part of its Circular Economy Concept for the Tire Industry, TOWANOWA. These racing tires are our first-ever product adopting sustainable carbon black. We provide these tires in the GT300 Class in Round 4 of the 2025 AUTOBACS SUPER GT, which will be held at Fuji Speedway in Shizuoka Prefecture on August 2 and 3.

For sustainable carbon black, we have pursued a joint project with Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation since January 2025. In addition to its use in tires for GT300 Class cars this time, it will also be adopted for tires of some passenger cars by the end of 2025.

Racing tires adopting sustainable carbon black	Car No. 61 SUBARU BRZ GT300 * The tires shown are different from those adopting sustainable carbon black

From tire to tire—A collaboration system supporting resource recycling
Under a collaboration system, Sumitomo Rubber and Mitsubishi Chemical are advancing a resource recycling initiative for carbon black, a main raw material used in tires. Sumitomo Rubber supplies rubber chippings (recycled materials) generated from tire manufacturing processes and crushed end-of-life tires to Mitsubishi Chemical. Mitsubishi Chemical then utilizes coke ovens for chemical recycling* to produce sustainable carbon black.

A step toward realizing a recycling society, the goal of TOWANOWA TOWANOWA features a two-ring structure, with a “Sustainable Ring” consisting of five processes in the value chain and a “Data Ring” linking big data collected from each process. We aim to provide new value by sharing/using data between the two rings. Under TOWANOWA, we have implemented initiatives to reduce environmental burden, such as the promotion of the use of sustainable raw materials. Providing racing tires adopting sustainable carbon black for the actual race this time is one of the outcomes of TOWANOWA. By realizing TOWANOWA, Sumitomo Rubber will continue to strive to reduce environmental burden, improve the performance and safety of tires, and expand solution services. Through these activities, we will contribute to providing new value to our customers and realizing a sustainable future for mobility society.

<Reference>
Sumitomo Rubber and Mitsubishi Chemical Launch Collaboration to Recycle Carbon Black for Tires(News release on January 30, 2025)
https://www.srigroup.co.jp/english/newsrelease/2025/sri/2025_006.html
Introducing a Circular Economy Concept for the Tire Industry: TOWANOWA
(News release on March 8, 2023) https://www.srigroup.co.jp/english/newsrelease/2023/sri/2023_018.html

* Chemical recycling: A recycling method in which end-of-life resources are chemically decomposed to be turned into raw materials for new production