Toyota Motor Europe (TME) has announced the establishment of a new Circular Factory in Walbrzych, Poland, which will occupy 25,000 square meters and process approximately 20,000 end-of-life vehicles annually.

This initiative is part of TME's strategy to develop a circular economy model focused on reducing, reusing and recycling to maximize environmental benefits. The facility will employ a comprehensive approach to vehicle processing, aimed at recovering components and raw materials such as copper, steel, aluminum and plastics for potential remanufacture, repurposing or recycling.

This Circular Factory will enhance the operations of the existing Walbrzych plant, which produces key components for Toyota's hybrid and conventional powertrains.

Leon van der Merwe, vice president of Circular Economy at TME, noted that this is the company's second Circular Factory in Europe, following the first one launched in 2025 in Burnaston, UK, which serves as a model for circular economy operations.

Poland was selected due to its strong market potential for sourcing end-of-life vehicles and existing manufacturing infrastructure.

The focus on circularity aligns with efforts toward carbon neutrality by reducing the demand for carbon-intensive raw materials and strengthening supply chains. Through designing vehicles with considerations for reuse, remanufacturing, recycling and material efficiency, circularity can potentially reduce emissions across the value chain. Toyota plans to introduce similar investments in other European markets in the future.

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