Waste Management Startup in Indonesia Receives Investment from Singapore

Circulate Capital, a Singapore-based investment management company, invested in RecikiSolusi Indonesia (Reciki), one of the private waste management companies in Indonesia.

Reciki Solusi Indonesia sorts waste from households and commercial areas, and recovers recyclable materials, including plastic, to be returned to the recycling chain.

Reciki’s success is built on its ability to adapt to the needs of each city and allow for higher recovery rates. Because of Danone AQUA support as the pioneer partner, this startupcurrently operates two MRFs in Lamongan (East Java) and Badung (Bali).

Through investment from Circulate Capital, Reciki plans to expand its facilities throughout Indonesia, with the ambition to process more than 1,000 tons of waste per day. This will replicate the efficiency of the Reciki system in processing at least six times more waste than similar services available on the market in 2020.

In addition, Reciki’s expansion is expected to create more than 400 safe, stable and dignified jobs in the formal sector and pave the way for the formalization of informal sector workers in the waste management industry.

Circulate Capital founder and CEO Rob Kaplan said, “Circulate Capital believes Reciki will have a real impact and help Indonesia achieve its leadership ambitions in preventing plastic pollution.”

Reciki’s fit-for-purpose model fits this purpose, enabling better and faster waste processing, thereby potentially increasing plastic recovery and recycling nationwide.

“Partnering with the Reciki team and Danone Aqua as co-investors, we believe Reciki can take advantage of this capital and soon become the best solution provider for cities throughout Indonesia.” he explained in a written statement, Monday (20/12/2021).

Currently, 36 percent of plastic waste is managed by open burning and contributes as much as 91 percent of the total carbon footprint of Indonesia’s plastic waste.

This funding will help Reciki to expand its current capacity and realize a strong environmental impact in order to prevent 400,000 tonnes of plastic pollution leakage, avoid more than 700,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) and manage nearly 3 million tonnes of waste over a 10 year period.

Changing Indonesia’s Waste Management Industry

Bhima Aries Diyanto, CEO and Founder of Reciki, said the company looks forward to partnering with Circulate Capital to develop and scale up operations to meet the pressing demand for effective and environmentally friendly waste management.

“We believe our solutions can transform Indonesia’s waste management industry, reduce the plastic pollution crisis, and deliver more value from used materials — in a way that empowers local communities to be part of the solution.” he clear.

Some of the loans given to Reciki received credit guarantees from the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The existence of this guarantee reduces investment risk and demonstrates the benefits of blended finance.

Collaboration with Danone-AQUA

Danone-AQUA again offers the latest waste management solution by establishing the Samtaku Integrated Waste Disposal Site (TPST) in Jimbaran, Badung.

This company was founded in 1973 and a pioneer in Bottled Drinking Water and Soft Drinks in Indonesia. As an original Indonesian brand, Danone-AQUA company has always tried to spread goodness to the community by providing healthy hydration and maintaining sustainability naturally for more than forty seven years.

Through a media tour held on Monday, December 6, 2021, Danone-AQUA explained the company’s efforts in responding to the challenge of reducing the amount of waste that ends up in the Final Disposal Site in Suwung, Bali.

Bali has struggled with waste management for years and the island is short on space due to overcrowding of landfills, coupled with the government’s plan to close the Suwung TPA which has a capacity of 1,423 tons of waste per day or about 25 percent of Bali’s total waste.