For the first time, the ENGIE Group impact fund is investing in a start-up – Axibio - at the seed stage. The aim is to provide support at the earliest possible stage of its project for the collection, treatment and conversion of biowaste into biomethane.
Axibio is a French start-up company whose made-to-measure solutions are primarily aimed at the catering industry and local authorities, together responsible for two-thirds of France's organic waste production. With some 12 million tonnes produced per year in France, biowaste is both a major environmental issue and an unexploited resource.
The company proposes integrated offers, adopting a short-circuit approach, contributing to the development of the methanisation chain throughout the country. The equipment developed by Axibio incorporates innovative ergonomics and functionalities (weight measurement, access control, associated digital infrastructure), as well as patented material processing technologies, and is entirely manufactured in France. The digital layer embedded in Axibio's proposal makes it possible to manage the collection of biowaste, monitor its recovery as energy and obtain indicators on food waste. Axibio also goes into schools having adopted its solutions to raise awareness of the importance of tackling food waste and climate change.
By 2024, Axibio aims to:
- collect 25,000 tonnes of biowaste per year,
- thereby helping to reduce CO2 emissions by 5,000 tonnes per year and produce 18,000 MWh of biogas per year,
- and raise awareness of measures to tackle food waste among 150,000 people.
“Through this investment, ENGIE Rassembleurs d'Energies is making a commitment to the development of local circular economy loops and helping to structure the biomethane sector in France. It’s also the first time that the fund has got involved in the seed phase of a project, the aim being to support the growth of this company at a very early stage.”
Anne Chassagnette, CEO of Rassembleurs d'Energies and CSR Director at ENGIE
“We are delighted to be able to benefit from the support of ENGIE Rassembleurs d'Energies in our business project; together, we have real synergies to unlock in the biogas sector, in particular to promote the collection of domestic biowaste and its conversion into energy by methanisation”.
Marc Eyraud and Pierre-André Galy, co-founders of Axibio