LWARB launches £20m-fund for waste infrastructure projects

By Annie Kane | 12 November 2014 | Add a Comment

The London Waste and Recycling Board (LWARB) has today (12 November) launched a new call for expressions of interest from organisations seeking funding for waste infrastructure projects.

As part of LWARB’s investment framework for 2015-2020, the body will be investing a total of £20 million in waste-related infrastructure projects.

It is hoped that the funding will help to ‘tackle London’s waste and meet the environmental requirements of the Mayor of London’s waste strategies’.

£20-million funding structure

The money is being offered to projects at different development stages, including:

a £6-million capital fund for new waste infrastructure projects in or around London;
a £5-million corporate loan fund for existing waste companies in London seeking to expand or upgrade their equipment;
a £1-million development loan fund to support prospective projects in their early stages;
a £1-million venture capital fund (which will be launched next year); and
a potential £7-million investment in a new equity fund (opportunities for which are still being explored).

However, LWARB has said it will not invest in projects that can be wholly financed by the private sector, but instead will ‘focus on optimising leverage of funds by helping to de-risk those projects that are on the margins of private sector delivery’.

LWARB launches £20m-fund for waste infrastructure projects LWARB has produced a list of suitable projects that the funds could cover, including: recyclate sorting and separation; secondary material reprocessing or remanufacturing; anaerobic digestion and composting facilities; thermal/chemical conversion technologies; circular economy technologies; and reuse and recycling waste collection infrastructure (except those already financed through the London Reuse Network or communication activities).

Fund is ‘vital to the treatment of current and future waste generated in London’

Announcing the funding today, Richard Tracey, Chair of LWARB, said: “The Mayor of London’s Infrastructure Investment Plan has identified the need for an additional 40 new waste facilities in London by 2050 as well as replacing existing facilities as they reach the end of their life. LWARB’s funding pot will play a critical role in supporting waste infrastructure development and is vital to the treatment of current and future waste generated in London.”

Melville Haggard, Chair of LWARB’s Investment Committee, added: “LWARB has repeatedly shown that it can act as a catalyst for new waste infrastructure projects, helping SMEs [small- and medium-sized enterprises] through the complex process of financing projects. We are looking forward to seeing some ground-breaking new projects getting delivered in London with the support of this new fund.”

Since 2010, LWARB has invested around £30 million in waste infrastructure projects in London, including PlasRecycle, the UK’s first dedicated plant for recycling post-consumer shopping bags; TEG Biogas, an anaerobic digestion and composting facility; and Ecotech, a PET bottle reprocessing and material recovery facility. LWARB has also helped to establish and fund the London Reuse Network, and has recently launched a mattress recycling project, which is profiled in Resource 78.

Find out more about the investment criteria and how to submit an expression of interest.