Applause, Continental Bitumen’s first EPD goes live

What just launched

Continental Bitumen has published its first Environmental Product Declaration for a Biogenic Bituminous Binder Component, issued in August 2025 and valid through August 2030. The declaration sits with the program operator EPD Hub and follows NPCR 025 Part B for Asphalt, the rule set commonly used for asphalt products in the Nordics. Scope reads as a single component used to modify paving‑grade or polymer‑modified bitumen to lower the finished binder’s footprint.

Why this matters in specs

Binder suppliers often sit upstream of the asphalt plant, so they get left out of the transparency conversation. A product‑specific EPD brings them into view, letting mix producers and public owners reference measured impacts rather than generic factors that act like ankle weights in whole‑project accounting. It also reassures teams working toward LEED v5 style carbon targets that a key input is ready for prime time.

Quick snapshot of the competitive field

Two groups matter here. First, additive makers that sell modifier systems into paving binders. Iterchimica shows the category’s direction with an EPD for its Gipave supermodifier under The International EPD System, which signals that additives can carry product‑level transparency today. Second, the classic binder brands. As of January 19, 2026, we did not find product‑specific EPDs in EC3 for bitumen binder components from Shell Bitumen, Nynas, or TotalEnergies, which gives Continental Bitumen an early visibility edge in this precise niche.

Program operator note

The EPD is published with EPD Hub, a digital‑native operator recognized by ECO Platform as an Established ECO EPD Programme Operator in December 2025. That recognition means eligible EN 15804 EPDs appear in ECO Portal, a plus for discoverability across European tenders (ECO Platform, 2025). For a plain‑language overview of EPD Hub’s model and where it fits, see our explainer on EPD Guide, EPD Hub: a digital‑native program operator.

Who Continental Bitumen serves, and why timing helps

Continental Bitumen supplies paving‑grade and polymer‑modified binders across Europe, Africa, and other regions as part of the Colas Group. That puts them at the handshake between refineries, terminals, and asphalt plants where carbon data is increasingly requested in prequals and performance‑based specs. Launching a binder‑component EPD now makes it easier for road agencies and tier‑one contractors to assemble project EPD packs without workarounds.

What this debut means competitively

• If a spec calls for product‑specific EPDs, a binder input with an EPD can avoid the penalty of defaulting to generic factors. That keeps the finished mix in play rather than nudging buyers toward an alternative that has transparent inputs baked in.
• Iterchimica’s EPD shows additives are already benchmarked in parts of Europe. Continental Bitumen’s entry means modifier‑style components are not just nice‑to‑have, they are commercially decisive. There is definitley room to widen the gap before rivals catch up.

Can we see the EPD on their website?

We could not find the EPD listed on Continental Bitumen’s site as of today. There is not yet EPDs visible on their product or sustainability pages at continentalbitumen.com. Visibility is half the battle, so posting the PDF and a short summary page will help estimators and agency buyers grab it fast during submittals.

Smart next steps for product teams watching this

Extend coverage from the biogenic component to core binder families that show up in tenders, for example common paving grades and primary PMB ranges. Match PCR choices to the markets you sell into, and verify with a widely accepted operator so project teams do not need exceptions. Pick an LCA partner that handles data wrangling inside your plants so your technical and ops staff can keep making product while the paperwork moves.

The takeaway

Continental Bitumen has entered the transparency arena with a targeted binder‑component EPD. That lets asphalt producers plug a verified input into mix EPDs, and it puts pressure on large binder brands that have not yet published component‑level declarations in this space. Early movers tend to set the bar that everyone else must clear.