Welsh startup Reclinker raises $13 million to turn demolition waste into low-carbon cement
The company recycles old cement in steelmaking furnaces and says the process can cut emissions by half at the same cost as conventional cement.
Reclinker, a startup based in Cardiff, Wales, has raised 10 million pounds ($13 million) in its first major venture funding round to commercialize technology that turns cement recovered from demolition waste into low-carbon cement.
Cement accounts for about 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions, largely because making clinker, its key ingredient, requires heating limestone, which releases carbon dioxide. Conventional cement is 77% clinker on average.
Reclinker recovers cement paste from construction and demolition waste and converts it back into clinker in the electric arc furnaces used in steelmaking, avoiding kilns, quarried limestone and fossil-fuel heat. The company said the process could cut emissions by 50% at first, with deeper cuts as it scales, at the same cost as conventional cement.
Clean Growth Fund and AP Ventures co-led the round, with the Development Bank of Wales and Kibo Invest also taking part. The money will expand the company's team and production in Cardiff and take the technology to steel sites in Europe and the United States.
"This oversubscribed round sends a strong signal that UK investors are serious about decarbonisation," said Bill Yost, Reclinker's chief executive.
This brief is based on reporting by Kenny Fisher, published Oct. 6, 2026, in ESG Today. Read the original: https://www.esgtoday.com/reclinker-raises-13-million-to-turn-construction-waste-into-low-carbon-cement/
This article was produced with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by an editor before publication.
