Solar module recycling startup SOLARCYCLE raised $30 million in a recent Series A round, bringing the company's fundraising total to $37 million since launching in 2021.
SOLARCYCLE aims to use the funds, consisting of both growth equity and infrastructure financings, to scale the company's recycling capacity and expand materials remanufacturing capabilities.
The round was led by Fifth Wall and HG Ventures with participation from Prologis Ventures, and existing investors Urban Innovation Rund and Closed Loop Partners. The announcement follows the initial $6.6 million seed round the company raised in May 2022.
Suvi Sharma, CEO and co-founder, said the funds will allow the company to advance its technology, grow partnerships with industry leaders, and "rapidly build recycling infrastructure in the United States and beyond to mine old solar panels for making new solar panels.”
GO DEEPER: SOLARCYCLE co-founder and CEO Suvi Sharma joined Episode 11 of the Factor This! podcast to discuss the solar industry's recycling imperative. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
SOLARCYCLE said it is already able to recycle 95% of a solar panel's valuable materials, including valuable materials like aluminum, glass, copper, silver, and silicon including. Bringing down the cost of solar panel recycling is still likely to require significant capital to support research and development in the coming years, the company said.
While it's true that around 70% of solar projects were built in
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