A $10 million Series A extension round was co-led by South Korean chemical firm Hanwha Solutions and Taizo Son. The Series A has raised $21 million and its total funding has risen to $24 million.
Far Eastern Group's corporate venture arm Drive Catalyst is one of the investors in the extension.
This round brings together mission-driven financial investors and industry strategics who believe in our vision of a circular economy for plastics. Wang said that the mission of the company is to create a circular economy by turning low-value plastic waste into high-quality chemicals and materials.
The startup says the investors of Series A are interested in decarbonizing energy, textiles, construction and other industries across Europe, Asia and the U.S.
Hanwha Solutions, the Korean chemical and plastics producer, will provide expertise in process development, as well as Valo and Fortum, which are the limited partners of Fortum. Far Eastern Group, a Taiwan-headquartered recycling company, could help open access to customer markets in Asia, as well as Bemis Associates, a textile adhesives maker and a TPU user.
The problem of plastic began with a field trip to the South Waste Transfer Station. According to Wang, less than 9% of all plastic is recycled, and many things put into the recycling bin don't get recycled because there is a lack of market demand for contaminated, low-grade plastic waste. The world produces twice as much plastic waste as it did 20 years ago, and only 9% of it is recycled, according to a new report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
The $21 million Series A financing will be used to scale up runs of its chemical process above the 1 metric ton scale and to set up a feedstock pretreatment unit in California so that it can get pilot product Oistre thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) customers faster, Wang told. The unit that takes in dirty plastic and shreds it to create usable plastic for use in the chemistry of the product is called the feedstock pretreatment unit.
Oistre is a technical material for use in durable products like shoes, apparel, sporting goods, electronics and cars. The carbon footprint of the TPU made from post-consumer waste is up to 46% smaller than conventional ones, according to the company.
The image is from Novoloop.
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Plastic waste can be transformed into high- performance chemicals and materials with the help of a proprietary technology.
The cheapest type of plastic is polyethylene, and the technical grade is TPU.
According to Wang, the most abundant plastic is high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene and low linear density polyethylene. Milk jugs and laundry detergent bottles are made from high density plastic. LDPE and LLDPE, which are mostly used in bags and films like food packaging and shipping packaging, are difficult to recycle because it is easily contaminated and too expensive to be mechanically processed into economical material.
Mistletoe is a firm believer in the financial and environmental impact the company will create, said Taizo Son, founder of Mistle.
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