Carbon fiber recycler Fairmat nets €34M from Temasek

French recycling startup Fairmat has raised €34 million (~$35 million) in Series A funding led by Temasek and investment firm CNP.

Why it matters: Carbon fiber is a difficult-to-recycle material that is also instrumental for the success of a growing number of companies relying on recycled materials to meet net-zero goals.

Details: Temasek and CNP will get board seats as part of the all-equity deal, Fairmat CEO Ben Saada tells Axios. Existing investors Pictet Group, Singular and The Friedkin Group International also participated in the round. CNP is controlled by France's Frere family.

How it works: Fairmat operates a sorting and recycling center it opened in October that uses robots to process difficult-to-recycle materials like carbon fiber.

• It expects to have 100 robots in its initial center that will process 200 metric tons per year in 2023.
• It also plans to expand to other types of materials found in electronic waste and vehicles.

State of play: Materials recycling is growing as new resources dwindle due to supply chain issues around the world.

• EV battery production, for example, is one industry that has been hampered by recent metals and materials constraints that a handful of other recycling companies are attempting to recycle and reuse.
• Many consumer companies are also looking to tap recyclers to produce textiles for clothing and footwear in a bid to hit net-zero goals.

The bottom line: There are more willing buyers of recycled materials than facilities able to sort and process them.