Singapore-based circular economy investor Circulate Capital inked its second deal in Latin America by investing in Brazil’s Cirklo. Cirklo is the result of a merger between Green PCR and Global PET, two Brazilian recycling companies owned by Sao Paulo-based private equity firm eB Capital.
“Our focus is to seize growth opportunities in the recycled plastics market in Brazil and pave the way for sustainable development and innovation in the sector,” said eB’s Luciana Antonini Ribeiro.
The company has two plants in Sao Paulo and Paraiba, in northeastern Brazil, that recycle a combined four billion plastic bottles per year. Circulate’s investment will enable Cirklo to expand its footprint in Brazil’s Northeast and Southeast.
Latam pipeline
Brazil is one of more than two dozen Latam countries with plastic waste recycling laws in place. Circulate says four of those countries, including Chile and Mexico, are well-positioned to rapidly move towards a circular plastics economy. The circular-economy investor has mapped out a pipeline of 100 companies that require at least $240 million in growth funding.
Circulate’s investment in Cirklo comes from its new Latin America and Caribbean strategy, backed by IDB Lab, Lukas Walton’s Builders Vision, Mondelez International, Unilever and other corporate backers. Its first investment in the region was in Colombia-based recycling company Polyrec (see, “With investment in Colombia, Circulate Capital brings growth capital to plastics recycling in Latin America”).
