Dubai’s Averda secures $45m investment from US firm to develop recycling facilities

Averda, the Dubai-based waste and recycling company, has been approved for a $45 million investment loan from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for the development, construction and operation of plastics recycling facilities in Africa and India.

Averda’s CEO Malek Sukkar, said the investment support will accelerate the company’s “plans to build plastics recycling capacity in markets which need it most”.

“The problem of plastic pollution is one of the great challenges of our age and we are determined to build the facilities and systems to see these materials collected, sorted and recycled locally so that they can be reused in manufacturing. Building local processing capacity is a key cornerstone of the circular economy we need to develop in all markets, including these emerging ones,” said Sukkar.

Averda’s CFO Samir Sharma, added: “This investment not only unlocks the necessary funding to fast track our ambitious plans, it also represents a vote of confidence from one of the most rigorous funding institutions in the world. Our corporate growth strategy, Renew24, will see us expand our sustainable waste treatment services over the coming years to ensure as much waste as possible is diverted from landfill.”

Excited to have secured a $45m investment loan from the US @DFCgov to support the construction & operation of plastics recycling facilities in Africa and India. A vote of confidence in our approach & step towards building vital local processing capacity. https://t.co/OvMdlqHAAy pic.twitter.com/QiVdIKvEFX

— AVERDA (@averda) February 17, 2022

Sharma added that this investment loan, alongside the green financing the company secured from HSBC, would accelerate its growth.

The board of directors of DFC included Averda’s projects in the latest round of quarterly investments, which total more than $1.1bn invested toward innovative and promising development projects around the world.

“DFC’s approved key projects this quarter that will help advance global efforts to tackle the climate crisis, support inclusive growth and gender equity in developing countries, and more,” said Dev Jagadesan, DFC’s acting CEO.