Infinity Recycling, LyondellBasell and Chevron Phillips Chemical invest in plastic circularity specialist
Alterra, a plastic circularity technology specialist, has closed its latest equity investment round with funding from Infinity Recycling, LyondellBasell and Chevron Phillips Chemical. Financial terms of the deal are undisclosed.
The investment round will advance the commercialization of Alterra’s Advanced Recycling technology, designed to transform discarded plastic into valuable raw materials to cut landfill dependence.
With this new funding, the company aims to deploy its solutions globally.
“Our investment in Alterra demonstrates our commitment to capturing value from plastic waste and preventing it from going to incineration or landfills,” says Martino Gabellich, VP of Advanced Recycling and Low Carbon Solutions at LyondellBasell.
“These continuous investments along the value chain will help us scale our range of circular and low carbon solutions for our customers, while also contributing to the efforts to build a circular economy that benefits society and the planet.”
Unlocking economic opportunities
Infinity Recycling led the financing round via its Circular Plastics Fund. Alterra also received additional equity investments as part of this round from Finnish circular and renewable feedstock solutions partner Neste and long-term private investor Potenza Capital.
“This funding marks a pivotal moment in our journey. We are excited to collaborate with our strategic partners to scale our technology and bring effective recycling solutions to communities around the world,” says Alterra CEO, Fred Schmuck.
Arie Hooimeijer, head of Investments at Infinity Recycling, adds: “Investing in Alterra aligns with our mission to support innovative solutions in the circular plastics economy.”
“The advanced recycling technology developed by Alterra not only reduces plastic waste by reusing plastic materials but also unlocks new economic opportunities. We are thrilled to be part of this transformative effort.”
Benny Mermans, VP of Sustainability at Chevron Phillips Chemical, comments: “This investment in Alterra reflects our company’s broader sustainability goals, including collaborating globally to advance the circular economy. We support ending plastic waste in the environment by sustainably recycling used plastics to create new and valuable products.”
In other circularity moves this month, Fortum Recycling & Waste has successfully produced biodegradable plastic from carbon dioxide emissions from waste incineration at its plant in Riihimäki, Finland. The Finnish circular waste management company expects to expand this new material production primarily for sustainable food and cosmetics packaging and potentially other sectors like toys and home electronics.
THG expanded its consumer recycling scheme that targets hard-to-recycle beauty and cosmetic packaging, helping brand partners offset new packaging waste fees. The Recycle:me program involves a Royal Mail doorstep collection service allowing UK consumers to recycle any brand’s cosmetic packaging at no cost.
Meanwhile, US-based Encina Development Group and Singapore’s Blue Planet Environmental Solutions inked a supply deal for hard-to-recycle waste streams to be used as feedstock for producing Encina’s circular chemicals. Encina’s circular materials are a “low-carbon, molecularly identical” substitute to traditional fossil-fuel-derived chemicals.
