TPG Rise Climate, the climate investing strategy of TPG’s global impact investing platform, led an investment round of $170 million in the Israeli global awarded company UBQ Materials.
The financing round also included existing investors, Battery Ventures, and other investors such as M&G’s Catalyst strategy, a UK-based investor specializing in flexible, long-term impact investments. Additional terms of the investment were not disclosed.
UBQ Materials’ patent converts landfill-bound municipal solid waste, including all organics into UBQ, a climate-positive, cost-competitive, and totally recyclable plastic substitute.
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UBQ can be used alone or in combination with conventional oil-based resins to offset the overall carbon footprint of final products in industries such as construction, automotive, logistics, retail, and even 3D printing.
Founded in 2012 by CEO Jack (Tato) Bigio, Albert Douer (Executive Chairman), and Yehuda Pearl, UBQ is a worldwide recognized cleantech firm with customers such as Mercedes-Benz, global retail solutions supplier Mainetti, and Arcos Dorados, the world’s largest franchisee of McDonald’s restaurants in Latin America.
Today, over 2 billion tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) are generated annually worldwide, with more than 70% of that material ending up in landfills or being dumped openly. Landfills are the third greatest emitter of methane, a greenhouse gas (GHG) that is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide during a 20-year period. For every ton of UBQ generated, the solution can prevent the emission of up to 12 tons of CO2 equivalent.
“In addition to converting municipal waste into functional thermal plastics, UBQ’s material solution is energy efficient, uses no water and produces no effluents,” said Steve Ellis, Co-Managing Partner of The Rise Funds. “UBQ can be utilized in a broad array of industrial and consumer applications. We’re excited to be partnering with management to scale the business globally.”
The investment will be used to fund UBQ’s global development in order to fulfill expanding demand, beginning with the establishment of a large-scale plant in the Netherlands by the end of 2022. The funds raised will also be used to further UBQ’s certifications, research, and development of new products.
“As countries and industries converged in Glasgow at COP26, negotiating the urgent benchmarks we must hit in lowering Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, this investment could not come at a more apt time,” said Albert Douer, Chairman and Co-CEO of UBQ Materials. “Through the prevention of landfill-related methane emissions and the replacement of carbon intensive raw materials, UBQ can support governments, brands and major manufacturers in achieving their sustainable development goals.”
“Waste is not the end, it is only the beginning,” said Jack (Tato) Bigio, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of UBQ Materials. “This financing round enables us to widen the reach of our patented conversion technology and novel material, bringing us closer to a functioning circular economy worldwide.”
