“The Sunderland facility is just the beginning, we aim to expand rapidly to meet the growing demand for sustainable fuels,” Vianney Valès, chief executive of Wastefront, said.

He said the new site would create more than 100 jobs and would not just “prevent millions of tyres from being discarded in landfill” butalso provide a “scalable, cost-effective pathway for SAF production”.

Michael Mordey, leader of Sunderland City Council, said the beginning of construction work marked the start of the port’s “growing deserved reputation”.

He said: “We’re proud that this has captured the attention of Wastefront.”