Valebridge Media Services (VMS) has announced the shortlist of nominees for the 2023 edition of the Recircle Awards, the event organised to promote and recognise sustainable innovation, production processes, management and services in the tyre retreading and recycling sector.

The shortlist, chosen from a preliminary list of candidates nominated by the public, has once again been compiled by the Recircle Awards Nominations Committee, made up of 14 experts, including respected tyre industry journalists, industry association heads and independent consultants from around the world.

The shortlisted nominees for the 15 award categories open to public vote are as follows:

Best Tread Rubber Supplier

- Dobermann

- Marangoni

- Pre-Q Galgo

- Silvercap

- Vipal Rubber

Best Retreading Equipment Supplier

- Central Marketing

- Italmatic

- Matteuzzi

- TRM

- Vipal Machinery

Best Tyre Recycling Industry Supplier

- Eco Green Equipment

- Eldan Recycling

- Fornnax

- Rubberjet Valley

- Tallants Navarro

Best Tyre Derived Recycled Product

- Ceyes: City Green Panels

- Michelin: Tyres containing rCB

- Rubtec SpA: Rubtec Rubber Bumpers

- Shredded Tire: Miami Echo Construction Blocks

- XTyre Global: Evaporation Inhibitor Floating Panel

Employee of the Year

- Ankita Saikia (Tyromer)

- Bernardita Diaz (SustrendLab)

- Camilla Raffaelli (VM Rubber)

- Fabricio Nedeff (Vipal)

- Ron Elliott (Pre-Q Galgo)

Best Passenger Retreader

- Black Star

- Fedima

- Insa Turbo

- Malatesta Pneumatici

- Radburg

Best OTR Retreader

- Community Tire

- FM Pneus

- Marangoni SpA

- Reifen Wagner

- Renova Peru

Best Truck & Bus Retreader

- Continental

- Insa Turbo

- Marangoni SpA

- Unigoma

- Vaculug

Mechanical Tyre Recycling Award

- Duramos SAS

- E-Cova

- Genan

- Murfitts

- Rembre Tyres

Tyre Devulcanization Award

- DRI Rubber

- EFG Polymers

- GRP Ltd

- Rubber Matters

- Tyromer Inc.

Tyre Pyrolysis Award

- Contec SA

- Ecolomondo Corp

- Kal Tire Chile

- Pyrum Innovations

- Scandinavian Enviro Systems

Best Retreading Accessory and Consumables Supplier

- Italmatic

- Marangoni

- Tech Europe

- Vipal Rubber

- VM Rubber

Best EPR Scheme     

- Circol ELT

- SDAB

- Seginus

- Signus Ecovalor

- Valorpneu

Best Tyre Recycling Research Project

- Blackcycle: The Blackcycle Project

- GEC Compounds: Research into the creation of Genesis Evolution Compounds

- María Esther Fernandez: The Application of Textile Waste from End-of-Use Tyres in the Production of Fibre Cement

- Patricio Muñoz / SustrendLab: The Recovery and Re-use of tyre sawdust in the manufacture of solid tyres for forklifts

- SustrendLab: Research into the extraction of T-Phite from tyres

Best Company Director

- Alexey Gryshchenko (Yashina)

- Hernan Diez Vargas (ANRE)

- Jorge Crespo (Vaculug)

- Matthias Leppert (Marangoni)

- Thomas Sorensson (Scandinavian Enviro Systems)

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In line with previous editions of the Recircle Awards, the winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award in the Tyre Recycling Sector will be decided by the Recircle Awards Nominations Committee and announced during the ceremony in Bologna in November. 

David Wilson, the Chairman of the Recircle Awards Nominations Committee and Publisher of Retreading Business y Tyre & Rubber Recycling, wanted to highlight the notable increase in nominations with the 2022 edition, “Since we launch the Recircle Awards, we have delighted with the reception it has received year after year. But this edition has once again, exceeded our expectations. We have received more than 1,100 individual nominations, which is 250 more than last year,” commented Wilson. “It is very satisfying to see the Recircle Awards continuing to establish itself further at an international level in each edition. We will continue to be committed to recognising the efforts of people, institutions and companies who promote the values of the circular economy in our sector. We wish good luck to all the nominees in the final vote,” concluded the Chairman of the Recircle Awards Nominations Committee.

Valebridge Media Services also announced that the voting window is now open for the 2023 edition of the Recircle Awards. The public can now vote for their candidates after registering themselves on the website of the 2023 Recircle Awards: https://recircleawards.com/categories-2023/. The voting system allows for only one vote per person per category. Registered voters from the 2022 edition are encouraged to use their credentials from the previous year to log in and vote. 

Voting in the 2023 Recircle Awards is open until 23:59 GMT on Friday, September the 8th, 2023, with the 2023 Recircle Awards being announced on Thursday the 16th of November 2023 in an awards ceremony which is due to take part within the framework of Futurmotive – Expo and Talks organised by the trade fair Autopromotec in Bologna, Italy.

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Radar Tires has secured a multi-year tie-up with the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL), taking on the role of Official Partner. The signing took place in General Santos City, at the residence of MPBL founder and boxing great Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Pacquiao. Both organisations frame the deal around a shared belief that sport can redirect young lives and deliver lasting benefits to society.

Pacquiao launched the MPBL in 2018 to steer Filipino youth towards a positive path through basketball, one that cultivates character and opens doors. His own rise from modest roots informed a league built on the nation's basketball fervour, giving players from every province a stage to be seen and rewarded. Homegrown athletes now use the MPBL as a national showcase and a route to a livelihood, while the home-and-away schedule carries live games into provincial communities. Games air on free-to-air television, and Pacquiao describes the league as his way of repaying the society that raised him.

Radar Tires carries a similar outlook, with community give-back woven into its identity since inception. Across roughly 20 years, the brand has funded efforts including 15 years of backing for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, support for emerging golfers via the Singapore Golf Association, and backing for athletes in tennis, off-road racing and other disciplines globally. Radar holds that financial limits should never block exceptional talent, and the MPBL deal puts that principle into practice in a basketball-loving nation.

The Philippines ranks among Radar's most important Asia-Pacific markets, and the company says Filipino drivers and dealers have responded warmly over the past decade. The tie-up opens with the rest of the Season 8 Playoffs and Finals before rolling into Season 9. As exclusive tyre sponsor, Radar receives full category exclusivity plus exposure across broadcast, livestream, digital and on-court channels. With 28 teams slated for roughly 400 games in 2027, the brand expects to reach neighbourhoods nationwide. The agreement joins Radar's wider global sports commitments, including Cricket South Africa, the Singapore Golf Association, the Texas Rangers, Michael Clarke and independent tennis and golf athletes.

Pacquiao said, "In basketball, just like in life, we go further when we move forward together. Through our partnership with Radar Tires, we share a common mission – to support Filipino talent, strengthen our communities and give our athletes the opportunity to chase their dreams. Because when we invest in sports, we invest in the future of our Filipino youth.”

G S Sareen, President and CEO, Omni United, said, "Giving back to the community has always been in our DNA. It is who we are at Radar Tires, and it is a commitment we have carried across every country we operate in. The Philippines holds a special place in our hearts. For over 17 years, Filipino drivers and dealers have welcomed our brand, and this partnership is our way of coming closer to them and the communities they call home. In the MPBL, we saw far more than a basketball league. Across eight seasons, Manny Pacquiao and his team have built something truly remarkable: a grassroots league that uplifts young Filipinos and their communities through sport, guides young people towards a positive path and gives rising talent the chance to be seen. Their mission reflects the very beliefs that guide us, and that shared purpose is what makes this partnership so meaningful. We have full faith in Manny Pacquiao's vision and in the MPBL's commitment to the next generation, and we are proud to stand alongside this exceptional league as it continues to grow."

Joe Ramos, Chief Executive Officer, MPBL, said, "The MPBL was built to bring basketball closer to Filipinos across the country. Partnerships like this help us continue that mission while creating more opportunities for our teams, players and communities. We welcome Radar Tires to the MPBL family and look forward to growing together.”

Emmer Oreta, MPBL Commissioner, said, "Radar Tires coming on board reflects the growing commercial appeal of the MPBL. Partnerships of this scale strengthen the league and create greater value for our fans and partners as we move toward Season 9.”

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India’s tyre maker reports record quarterly revenue but warns of weaker demand growth and rising input costs

CEAT will raise tyre prices further in the coming quarter as surging raw material costs threaten to undermine profitability, even as strong demand helped the Indian manufacturer deliver record quarterly revenue.

The company expects raw material costs to rise by a further 3–3.5 percent in the three months to December, following increases of 8–9 percent in the previous quarter and about 15 percent in the first quarter of the financial year. The cumulative increase since the end of March is expected to reach about 27 percent by December, management said recently.

Arnab Banerjee, Managing Director And Chief Executive, said CEAT would continue to raise prices across product categories in the coming quarter to recover higher input costs. The company would also pursue further increases in international markets, where pricing adjustments have lagged those in India.

“We need price increase and we will go for price increase,” Banerjee told analysts on the company’s second-quarter earnings call.

Consolidated revenue rose 26.2 percent year on year to INR 47.62 billion in the three months to September, the highest quarterly figure in the company’s history. Volume growth contributed about 40 percent of the increase, with the remainder coming from higher prices and a shift towards more expensive products.

But consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation fell 4 percent from a year earlier to INR 4.52 billion, leaving an EBITDA margin of 9.5 percent, down from a year earlier despite improving sequentially. Net profit dropped to INR 1.12 billion from INR 1.86 billion.

CEAT’s standalone EBITDA margin improved to 10.1 percent from the previous quarter, but remained well below the level recorded a year earlier as higher raw material costs worked through the business.

Price rises face a test

CEAT has increased prices by about 12–13 percent in the replacement market since the start of the financial year, and by 14–15 percent for original equipment manufacturers, which supply tyres directly to vehicle makers. Further increases are planned throughout the third quarter, with export prices to be adjusted selectively according to local competition.

Banerjee said the company’s standalone gross margin was about 33.5–33.6 percent in the first half, against a preferred range of 41–42 percent. A further increase in raw material costs in the coming quarter would add to the pressure.

The timing of price rises matters. Chief Financial Officer Kumar Subbiah said there was typically a lag of about three months before increases were fully reflected in the company’s results, particularly in the original equipment segment.

Management expects margins to remain closer to current levels in the third quarter, provided planned price increases are implemented. It declined to offer a firm forecast before those adjustments had taken effect.

CEAT’s pricing strategy is complicated by the difference between domestic and international markets. Export demand has recovered, particularly in Africa and Latin America, but the company has been slower to pass on higher costs overseas because it competes with both premium European manufacturers and lower-priced Chinese brands.

CEAT positions its products at prices about 15–25 per cent below leading European brands. Banerjee said the company would pursue smaller, more frequent price increases in individual countries rather than attempt simultaneous increases across all markets. He added that the international business remained more profitable at both gross margin and EBITDA levels than the domestic business.

The pressure on margins has been compounded by rising freight costs and disruption to shipping schedules.

Crude oil, which averaged about USD 84–85 a barrel at the beginning of the second quarter, subsequently rose to around USD 100 and was hovering near USD 105 at the time of the call. Natural rubber prices on the Singapore Commodity Exchange climbed from about USD 2,200 a tonne to USD 2,600, while domestic prices reached approximately INR 285 a kilogram, a more than 20-year high, according to Subbiah.

CEAT imports roughly two-thirds of its natural rubber and buys the remainder locally. The narrowing gap between international and domestic prices has reduced the advantage of sourcing from overseas, while longer transit times have increased the need to hold imported inventory.

Two-wheelers provide a demand buffer

Demand has so far proved resilient to higher prices, with replacement sales benefiting from the continued strength of India’s two-wheeler market and rural consumption.

CEAT expects replacement demand for two-wheeler tyres to grow at a double-digit rate in the second half of the financial year. Commercial vehicle replacement demand is forecast to rise at a mid-single-digit pace, while passenger car tyres are expected to grow at a low-single-digit rate. Farm-related demand is likely to remain subdued.

The outlook is less buoyant than the recent growth figures suggest. Management warned that demand could moderate in the third quarter because of a higher base of comparison, the potential effects of El Niño and a recent increase in the Reserve Bank of India’s repo rate.

Original equipment demand remains strong across vehicle categories, although year-on-year growth may ease as the comparison becomes more demanding.

CEAT said replacement demand had not suffered a material slowdown despite the price rises. A slight moderation in volumes during the quarter was partly attributable to production bottlenecks in some categories in July and August, alongside normal seasonal weakness after the summer months.

The company also said dealer inventories were not unusually high, arguing that any significant stock build-up would have become apparent by now.

CAMSO integration offers longer-term growth

Beyond the immediate pressure on costs, CEAT is counting on the integration of CAMSO, its off-highway tyre business, to expand its international reach and improve earnings over the next two years.

About 85 percent of CAMSO’s customers had transferred to CEAT by the end of September, with the remainder expected to move across by the end of November. The business is generating customer billings of about $10mn a month, management said, with revenue recognised by CEAT expected to increase as the transfer is completed.

The next stage is the installation of upstream equipment at CAMSO’s Sri Lankan plant, giving CEAT control over more of the production process, from raw material procurement to customer servicing. The work remains broadly on schedule, although completion could slip from the end of the current financial year into the first quarter of the next.

CEAT expects CAMSO’s volumes in the second half to increase by 20–25 per cent compared with the first half. The business should approach break-even or turn EBITDA-positive during the second half of the current financial year, with margins improving further in 2027-28. Management expects the acquisition to become earnings-per-share accretive at group level by 2028-29.

The company has established local entities in the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany and Poland to serve customers directly rather than exporting from Sri Lanka. Utilisation at the Sri Lankan plant remains below 50 per cent, leaving room to increase production as the business expands.

The integration will require further investment. CEAT expects to spend an additional INR1 billion–INR 1.5 billion on CAMSO’s upstream equipment during the current financial year, on top of about INR 14 billion planned for standalone capital expenditure. A further USD 44 million acquisition-related payment is due around the end of August 2028.

Expansion

 CEAT is investing in domestic manufacturing capacity at the same time as it absorbs CAMSO and manages higher working capital requirements.

The company spent INR 4.93 billion on standalone capital expenditure in the second quarter. This included more than INR 1.2 billion at its Nagpur plant to increase two-wheeler tyre capacity from 80,000 to 100,000 tyres a day, and about INR 2.8 billion at Chennai to expand truck and bus radial and passenger car tyre production.

Management said utilisation remained high in two-wheeler and truck and bus tyre categories, making the expansion necessary to meet expected demand.

International business accounted for about 20 per cent of standalone revenue and 24 per cent of consolidated revenue in the second quarter. CEAT wants to increase the international contribution to 33 per cent of total business within five years.

The company is also seeking to move upmarket. Sales of premium passenger car tyres, defined as those with rim sizes of 17 inches and above, grew at a mid-30s rate year to date. Its premium two-wheeler portfolio grew at a high mid-teens rate.

CEAT said it held a 25 percent share of the original equipment market for electric passenger cars and utility vehicles, and more than 30 percent in electric two-wheelers. It is also expanding the use of artificial intelligence in sales, manufacturing, finance and supply-chain management.

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Team MRF Tyres has secured the 2026 FIA European Rally Championship Teams’ title, marking its fourth such crown in five years. The Indian premium competition tyre manufacturer clinched the championship at Rally 6 Cities North of Portugal, finishing the season with 233 points and a dominant 98-point margin over its nearest competitor. The victory adds to the team’s previous ERC Teams’ Championships in 2022, 2023 and 2025.

The Portuguese finale delivered a standout performance, with Mārtiņš Sesks and Renārs Francis taking overall victory. MRF Tyres-equipped crews also claimed 16 fastest stage times across the rally’s 17 special stages, achieved by three different drivers – a remarkable statistic against some of Europe’s most competitive Rally2 opposition. The team fielded six crews across its official Team MRF Tyres and MRF Tyres Dealers Team programmes on the gravel stages around Fafe.

The four titles in five seasons reflect MRF Tyres’ sustained commitment to research and development-driven innovation. European rallying offers a demanding proving ground for evaluating tyre compounds, tread patterns, construction and performance across varying terrain, temperatures, loads and driving conditions. Data on grip, traction, wear, heat generation and durability, combined with post-event inspections and engineering analysis, helps refine designs, material formulations and structural parameters, with insights informing competition tyres and broader product applications.

The team’s international lineup included Sesks, Roope Korhonen, Patrick Enok, Simone Tempestini, Andrei Gîrtofan, Nicolas Otto, Erik Cais, Martin Vlček, Frank Tore Larsen and Eyvind Brynildsen. The 2026 championship strengthens MRF Tyres’ record in European rallying as the manufacturer continues to pursue further opportunities in international motorsport.

Sesks said, “We worked a lot towards this. Of course, it wasn’t easy for us and Roope today, as we both had some technical issues. The pace we were setting both yesterday and today meant we had to push really hard. Yesterday was all about giving everything from the beginning, while today was more about understanding what we could and couldn’t do. In the end, we played it safe, and it paid off. A huge thank you to MRF Tyres for their support and hard work. It’s just a shame we couldn’t bring home a one-two finish for the team.”

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The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company expanded its all-season portfolio with the Vector All Season 4, launched in late April 2026 and aimed at a broader span of European vehicles, from premium models to electric vehicles. Aimed at motorists who prefer a single set of tyres for the whole year, the product builds on almost five decades of Goodyear all-season development and debuts WeatherReady Technology, an engineering platform created to keep performance steady as conditions shift.

Independent testing has already brought the tyre attention. Tyre Reviews named it ‘Test Winner’ in its most recent all-season comparison, and Auto Bild Allrad likewise placed it first as ‘Test Winner’, drawing attention to exemplary snow traction plus second-place finishes in snow handling, dry handling and rolling resistance.

For regions where climate, roads and regulations favour all-weather rubber, the Vector All Season 4 serves as a premium choice for drivers wanting readiness for dry, wet and milder winter conditions year-round while easing the hassle of seasonal swaps such as workshop appointments, scheduling and off-season storage. Balanced dry, wet and winter capability now reaches rim diameters up to 23 inches, opening premium year-round convenience to segments that previously lacked an all-season option.

The new tyre sits alongside Goodyear’s existing all-weather range, including the Vector 4Seasons Gen-3, which in 2024 became the first all-season tyre to earn ADAC’s overall ‘Good’ rating. The Gen-3 remains especially suited to smaller cars, with most SKUs at 16 inches and below, pairing strong wet and snow performance with efficiency. Goodyear’s all-weather work dates to 1977 and the Tiempo, which the company calls the world’s first all-weather tyre. With the technology’s 50th anniversary nearing in 2027, Goodyear continues refining all-season tyres for evolving European driving conditions.

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