Inside Capital has invested $3.1m in the Mauritian recyclable waste collector company WeCycle, to drive its local and regional expansion.

Jérôme Lagesse, Managing Partner at Inside Capital, said: “This exciting investment in Wecycle is the sixth investment of our fund, and the third in or related to the waste recycling industry in the region.”

“The strong environmental and social impact these investments are generating individually is highly satisfactory, but even more the prospects of know-how sharing and build-up, and of synergies between them, raise high our hopes that we will be able – alongside our strong partners – to make a difference about how waste is managed in the region. Even more fulfilling is the fact that we are targeting to achieve that without compromise on the financial return that we expect to be excellent.”

WeCyle’s core business consists of collecting paper and cardboard for export to recycling companies in India, Indonesia, South Korea and Madagascar.

With sales averaging 5,500 tonnes a year, the company is the largest recyclable waste aggregator and exporter in Mauritius.

Inside Capital’s investment will support WeCycle to substantially expand its waste collection capabilites over the next three years.

Furthermore, this investment will provide the company with the means to install paper and carton waste recycling facilities in Mauritius, transforming paper waste into higher-value products to be sold locally and in the region, resulting in regional import/export flows reduction.

With Inside’s support, WeCycle will upgrade its internal organisation to better absorb the upcoming growth through the implementation of sound processes, the rolling-out of best practices, and the onboarding of complementary industrial, logistical and financial expertise.

The development of the synergies with the other investments of Inside, whether involved in the waste recycling industry, or in the renewable energy space will also be an area of value creation for the company, and hopefully for the region.

Ludovic Henry, CEO, WeCycle, said: “This partnership will not only enable us to strengthen our current recycling services but most importantly offer an ultimate solution by locally transforming waste into raw material for the Mauritian packaging industry, thus tackling the waste disposal concerns and contributing to a more circular economy that will benefit the country as a whole.”

Alexis Leclezio, Investment Associate at Inside Capital, added: “As a young Mauritian sensible to the environmental challenges, I am delighted to be part of the design and implementation of this project, along with Ludovic and our other portfolio companies. WeCycle will offer an alternative to substitute carton imports as well as reduce the export-based carbon emissions of wastepaper, and will also develop new expertise in the Country while providing a long-term solution to the growing waste problem on the Island.”