Closed Loop Partners Pledges up to $5 Million to Support Innovations from RRS NextCycle Initiative

Closed Loop Partners, a circular economy-focused investment firm and innovation center, will work collaboratively with participating states in the NextCycle initiative – currently Colorado, Michigan, and Washington – to identify opportunities to provide competitively priced and flexible financing to organizations and municipalities, up to $5 million per project.

RRS, a sustainable material and resource consulting firm, manages and facilitates NextCycle. Selected teams in the NextCycle initiative receive access to business, industry, and investment experts to develop project plans, make connections with partners and funders, and cultivate investment-ready and implementation-ready projects.

“For a circular economy to be robust and economically sustainable it needs a continuous flow of recycled materials, a viable recycling infrastructure, and accessible end markets,” said Jim Frey, RRS co-founder and CEO. “By leveraging state funds and accelerating the flow of private and non-profit capital into projects focused on infrastructure, technology, and supply chains, we can help mobilize recycling efforts in NextCycle states.”

Initially, this partnership will support innovative recycling projects in three NextCycle markets – Colorado, Michigan, and Washington. Each state, through its NextCycle initiative, will identify projects that develop recovery infrastructure solutions for post-consumer recyclable materials with a focus on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and aluminum, optimize innovative collection systems for polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), and divert from landfill back into the supply chain. Over the next three years of partnership, Closed Loop Partners will closely collaborate with the various NextCycle initiatives, identifying investable opportunities that advance collective circularity goals.

“Building a robust circular economy requires multiple stakeholders to be at the table. Closed Loop Partners is thrilled to collaborate with RRS and NextCycle to help identify and accelerate the most promising solutions,” said Jennifer Louie, Executive Director at Closed Loop Partners. “This partnership will continue to drive innovation and develop equitable local economies, while keeping valuable materials in play and out of landfills.”

Since 2014, Closed Loop Partners has invested in circular innovations, with an existing portfolio of more than 50 investments that have collectively diverted more than 4,600 million pounds of material from landfills and back into manufacturing supply chains. The firm’s Closed Loop Infrastructure Group deploys catalytic capital across a range of circular economy projects, companies, infrastructure and enabling technologies. Past investments include a recycling facility expansion and upgrade that included the first artificial intelligence-powered material sorting robots aimed at improving efficiency in Emmet County, Michigan, as well as a new single-stream recycling facility estimated to process thousands of tons of recyclables per year in rural Marquette County, Michigan.

More information on NextCycle can be found on the RRS website: RRS NextCycle.

About Closed Loop Partners 

Closed Loop Partners is a New York-based investment firm comprised of venture capital, growth equity, private equity and catalytic capital, as well as an innovation center focused on building the circular economy. Investments align capitalism with positive social and environmental impact by reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions via materials innovation, advanced recycling technologies, supply chain optimization and landfill diversion. Learn more at www.closedlooppartners.com. 

About Closed Loop Infrastructure Group 

Closed Loop Partners’ Infrastructure Group provides a flexible mix of financing solutions to support a range of circular economy projects, companies, infrastructure and enabling technologies. The Closed Loop Infrastructure Group deploys catalytic capital, which seeks to accelerate and de-risk the development of high-impact projects and companies. The Group manages four active funds: the Closed Loop Infrastructure Fund, Closed Loop Beverage Fun, Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund and Closed Loop Local Recycling Fund. Learn more here.  

About RRS 

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, RRS is a sustainability and recycling consulting firm that strives to create a world where resources are managed to maximize economic and social benefit while minimizing environmental harm. The firm has industry professionals, engineers, economists, technical analysts, and communication specialists who share this vision and possess core strengths in materials and recovery, life cycle management, applied sustainable design, and collaborative action development. www.recycle.com

Source: RRS