Averda, a leading waste and recycling company operating across the emerging world, is pleased to have concluded a successful refinancing of its $148m term loan, including a $30m Green Loan from syndicate leader HSBC.

Green lending refers to a lending dependent on environmental criteria for the planned use of funds.

Averda’s MD Justice Tootla explains there is a huge demand for these financial services in developing economies that are wrestling with the urgent need to transition to a more circular economy and balance economic growth with combatting climate change.

Tootla added that for a circular economy to become a reality, aligning the financial system with sustainable development will require actions across the entire financial system, and form part of a wider sustainable investment which aims at reducing the impact on the environment.

The $30m Green Loan portion reflects Averda’s recognised role in bringing sustainable waste management and waste-to-energy technology to the developing world. This is a growth area for the company.

This loan will be used to support a number of Averda’s existing sustainable waste management projects, especially its new blending platform in South Africa. The facility was launched last year at their Vlakfontein site in Gauteng.

These new state-of-the-art Blending Platforms allow the industry to transform hazardous waste liquids into an alternate fuel for the cement industry.

Producing such fuel from waste is no small feat and requires considerable investment to do so in ways that comply with the new Waste Classification and Management Regulations, introduced in South Africa in 2019 which puts a responsibility on the waste sector to safely dispose of hydrocarbon-based materials at landfill sites. Hazardous liquid and sludge can no longer be dumped, and this is where blending platforms enter the frame.

“We hope that this kind of partnership will pave the way for more access to green financing as we further expand our sustainable waste management services. By investing in existing and new facilities this will assist in bringing circular economy principles to developing economies which has been validated and supported by HSBC,” says Tootla.