Funding Allows GreenMantra Technologies to Expand and Innovate at Brantford Facility

GreenMantra Technologies, a rapidly growing clean technology company that produces high-value polymers from waste plastics will receive $5.2 million in funding to construct a new demonstration plant and improve capacity at their Brantford manufacturing facility. In addition to these funding announcements the company has also partnered with Sun Chemical to develop new polymers from polystyrene waste for ink formulations. These successes have caught the attention of Canadian Business who identified the company among its top 20 fastest growing startups for 2017.

The Closed Loop Fund is investing $3 million to enable GreenMantra to expand the capacity of its plant, which converts post consumer and industrial waste plastics, including hard to recycle films and bags, into high-value waxes. These polyethylene and polypropylene waxes, marketed under the Ceranovus brand, are used in various industrial applications including asphalt paving and roofing, plastics processing, adhesives and coatings. Additionally, Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) is providing $2.2 million in funding to be used toward construction of a demonstration plant that will convert waste polystyrene into modified styrenic polymers for use in inks, foam insulation and other applications.

The Closed Loop Fund, which is a $100 million social impact fund working to increase the recycling of products and packaging, made the announcement on July 26, 2017. Its investors are some of the world's leading retail and consumer goods companies including 3M, Coca Cola, Colgate Palmolive, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Keurig Green Mountain, Johnson & Johnson, Nestle Waters North America, Pepsico, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, and Walmart Foundation.

"GreenMantra's platform technology is an important innovation that builds a new regional market for post-consumer recycled mixed plastics," said Margot Kane, chief financial officer and chief investment officer, Closed Loop Partners. "GreenMantra's patented process enables the up-cycling of plastic waste into higher value products and is directly aligned with our goal of funding replicable technologies that will help unlock additional investment in recycling."

The expansion will increase the plant's annual capacity of 5,000 metric tons by an additional 2,500 metric tons per year. This will help GreenMantra meet growing demand for its polymer products, as well as increase the diversion of waste plastics from disposal into sustainable reuse.

"We are pleased with Closed Loop Fund's investment in our technology and their belief in our proven business model," said Kousay Said, president and chief executive officer of GreenMantra. "We are taking plastic waste that is destined for the landfill and cost-effectively transforming it into materials that add significant value to our customers' products and processes. This investment will enable us to continue our rapid growth and provides additional credibility for our efforts."

Construction of the plant expansion is anticipated to begin later this year with start-up of the new capacity slated for Q3 2018.

SDTC funding was announced August 9, 2017 by the Honorable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, during a ceremony at GreenMantra’s headquarters in Brantford, Ontario.

“We are thrilled that SDTC will provide a portion of the capital necessary for this important project,” said Mr. Said. “This pilot plant will enable us to scale up our patent-pending process for sustainably reusing of one of the world’s least recycled plastics.”

“As part of our government’s investments in clean technology and commitment to protecting the planet, we are pleased to support this next generation of GreenMantra’s sustainable technology,” said Minister Bains. “Transforming plastic waste into commercially viable products will not only drive innovation in sustainable reuse of waste materials, it also creates middle-class jobs in Ontario’s growing clean technology sector.”

Polystyrene plastic in foam and solid form is commonly used in consumer products, food and product packaging and many other applications. It is one of the world’s fastest growing solid wastes, yet has one of the lowest recycling rates of all plastics with an estimated 95 percent either disposed of in landfills or incinerated.

Using a proprietary catalyst and unique conversion process, GreenMantra Technologies has converted waste polystyrene foam into useful polymers on a laboratory scale. The demonstration plant, to be constructed at GreenMantra’s existing manufacturing complex in Brantford will have an anticipated initial annual capacity of 1,000 metric tons per year. This will provide an ample supply of converted modified styrenic polymers for trialing in end-use applications and potential initial commercial sales. The design and engineering of the new facility will begin this year, with construction starting in 2018.

GreenMantra currently converts waste polyethylene and polypropylene plastics, such as film, bottle caps and food containers, into specialty synthetic waxes. These waxes are used in various applications in the coatings, plastics processing, adhesives, roofing and paving industries.

On September 13, 2017, the company announced a partnership with Sun Chemical, the world's largest producer of printing inks, to jointly develop polymers from recycled polystyrene waste for use in ink formulations. The agreement combines GreenMantra's new patent-pending process for converting waste polystyrene into useful polymers with Sun Chemical's deep expertise in inks formulation. The goal is to develop sustainable styrenic polymers as a replacement for fossil fuel-based materials in certain ink applications.

More information on the company, its products and its innovative technology can be found at www.greenmantra.ca