UBQ raises $70 million to develop advanced materials from waste
The Israeli startup converts residual household waste diverted from landfills or incineration, including all organics, into an advanced thermoplastic material that is both climate-positive and highly recyclable
UBQ Materials, which develops advanced materials made from waste, announced on Wednesday that it has closed $70 million in funding, led by Eden Global Partners. Additional participants in the financing were return investors in the company, including TPG Rise Climate, TPG’s Rise Fund, Battery Ventures, and M&G’s Catalyst strategy.
Full list of Israeli high-tech funding rounds in 2023
UBQ, which employs over 100 people in 25 different countries, including 50 in Israel, took its total funding over the past two years to $240 million
"Every manufacturer is currently seeking an alternative, especially considering its impact on the environment and carbon emissions,” Jack (Tato) Bigio, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of UBQ Materials, told Calcalist. “The only viable option in the realm of plastics is recycling, but the available quantity is limited, and the quality is not high. Our material is competitively priced while offering all the sustainability benefits that factories are currently seeking. Our material is classified as recycled content."
The investment will support the company’s commercial, sales, and marketing scale up, as UBQ Materials continues its global expansion. This will include additional facilities in Europe and North America, alongside the impending opening of UBQ’s industrial-scale facility in Bergen Op Zoom, Netherlands. The new facility will have an annual production capacity of 80,000 tons of UBQ, converting 104,600 metric tons of waste annually into a new raw material.
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UBQ Materials’ bio-based thermoplastic, UBQ, serves as a sustainable alternative to fossil-based plastics. UBQ Materials converts residual household waste diverted from landfills or incineration, including all organics, into an advanced thermoplastic material that is both climate-positive and highly recyclable. Leading industry brands have already integrated UBQ into durable and semi-durable products such as car parts, footwear, pallets, display stands, panels, planters, with customers including Mercedes-Benz, PepsiCo, and McDonald’s.
“UBQ has pioneered a fully sustainable resource, pivotal for existing manufacturing industries across endless applications,” added Bigio. “Beyond major brands adopting UBQ, our compounding partners have become integral to our ecosystem allowing us to further expand our ‘Made with UBQ’ applications and international footprint, driving a true circular economy."
