The circular economy is on the rise: in 2021 more than 2.2 billion euros were invested in green start-ups, almost double the amount of the previous year. A real paradigm shift for the ‘cleantech’ sector.
† Recycling is becoming much more economically relevant †
noethic asked Sophie Paturle, president of France Invest’s ecological transition committee. This underlines a change of scale in the amount of investments, but also in their nature. The ‘cleantech’ sector is indeed diversifying: where renewable energy was ubiquitous, the circular economy is becoming increasingly attractive to investors. In particular, we note the success of Back Market, the company for the overhaul of electronic devices, with a record collection of 450 million euros.
In question, a sector that demonstrates its relevance and profitability:
† The circular economy has so far suffered from direct competition between recycled material and virgin material. Today, when we consider the need to remunerate the extraction of resources from nature for the services it provides, recycling becomes much more economically relevant. †
Sophie Paturle for noethic
A paradigm shift driven by society
Cleantechs follow the trends of society. In the current context of rising energy prices, the energy efficiency sector is becoming increasingly popular. If French investment funds are now interested in companies that offer solutions to environmental problems, it is also because demand is changing: consumption habits are changing, with a younger generation more inclined to sobriety.
And Sophie Paturele concludes: “We are being pushed by the younger generations who want to live differently. †