Recykal has put ₹10 crore into Walbha Industries, a biomass briquette and pellet maker, marking the circular economy startup’s first move into bioenergy.
Walbha runs a plant in Jhansi that converts agricultural waste—groundnut shells, mustard husk, sawdust—into industrial fuel at a daily capacity of 250,000 kg. The facility serves 57 industrial clients and sources feedstock from more than 21,100 farmers across North and Central India, according to Viestories. The investment will fund Walbha’s expansion into South Indian markets.
The Mechanics Of The Deal
The partnership connects Walbha to Recykal’s network of over 620 brands and manufacturers, giving the biomass maker a built-in demand channel. Walbha in turn gets access to Recykal’s digital supply chain platform to manage operations.
Recykal founder and CEO Abhay Deshpande said the deal supports a shift in industrial demand away from fossil fuels while giving farmers a paying alternative to burning crop residue.
Walbha’s existing customers include NTPC Vindhyachal and NTPC Tanda, two coal-fired power stations that are testing fuel diversification, per BioEnergy Times.
Sources differ on deal size: Entrackr and Viestories report ₹10 crore, while IndianWeb2.com described the investment as $100 million. That figure is not reconciled in the available reporting.
Sources
- entrackr: contributed reporting
- Entrackr: contributed reporting
- IndianWeb2.com: contributed reporting
- Viestories: contributed reporting
- BioEnergy Times: contributed reporting
Reporting compiled and contextualised by TechScoop India. Figures reconciled across the sources above.
Originally reported by entrackr.