SOLARCYCLE is engaged in solar panel recycling and has just raised $25 million in a Series A round. The transaction includes equity and infrastructure financing. The funds will allow the company to strengthen its solar panel recycling capacity and expand its material remanufacturing capabilities. The investment is led by Fifth Wall, the largest asset manager focused on improvement, resilience and decarbonization in the built world, and HG Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of The Heritage Group. Prologis Ventures and existing investors Urban Innovation Fund and Closed Loop Partners also participated in the funding round.
SOLARCYCLE’s solar panel recycling
Founded in 2022 by experts in solar panel manufacturing, advanced recycling and climate technology, SOLARCYCLE’s mission is to create a sustainable supply chain for the solar industry in North America. With solar power growing rapidly over the next decade, from 150 GWp installed in 2021 to 650 GWp installed per year in 2030, the company has developed a proprietary technology that recovers more than 95% of valuable materials from solar panels, such as aluminum, glass, copper, silver and silicon. This process allows them to be reused to create a sustainable and scalable solar industry. SOLARCYCLE works with residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as utility companies, to recycle solar panels on a large scale.
The solar panel recycling company plans to install a recycling capacity of one million solar panels per year by the end of 2023. This capacity should enable the company to meet the growing demand for solar panel recycling. It also plans to open an advanced, vertically integrated recycling plant capable of processing millions of panels per year by 2024. This will strengthen the company’s position in the solar panel recycling market and enhance its ability to provide quality solar panels to its customers.
The importance of investing in solar panel recycling
The Series A funding will allow SOLARCYCLE to invest in the patented technology, develop partnerships with industry leaders and rapidly build a recycling infrastructure in the U.S. and around the world. The financing infrastructure, led by Fifth Wall Infrastructure and Special Situations partner Alok Sindher, provides equity capital for SOLARCYCLE’s Odessa, Texas, plant.
According to recent research, recyclable materials from solar panels are expected to be worth more than $2.7 billion by 2030, up from just $170 million this year. This recycling industry is therefore in full expansion and offers many opportunities for companies that engage in this path.
