Closed Loop Partners announced that its Closed Loop Infrastructure Fund (CLIF) signed and funded its second loan to the Broken Arrow Municipal Authority. The new loan of $1 million was used to support the Authority’s purchase of five new automated side loader recycling trucks. The new equipment bolsters the Authority’s existing fleet of 33 solid waste collection vehicles and will help increase the efficiency of collecting both solid waste and recyclable materials across the city.
The Closed Loop Infrastructure Group, which is responsible for managing and deploying capital from four different investment funds, including CLIF, timed the new loan with the reopening of the Tulsa Recycling & Transfer materials recovery facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Resuming operation is a critical milestone and precursor to financing the project, as it helps ensure that all the city’s collected recyclable materials have clear end-of-life pathways and have the highest potential of being kept in circulation for longer.
The Closed Loop Infrastructure Fund closed its first loan of $2.6 million to the Broken Arrow Municipal Authority in October 2020. The initial loan helped purchase over 37,000, 96-gallon recycling carts, three recycling trucks, and four maintenance vehicles.
“Our work is centered in advancing more efficient circular supply chains for recyclable materials––from the collection to processing stage,” said Ron Gonen, Founder & CEO of Closed Loop Partners. “The Broken Arrow Municipal Authority plays a key role in this work, building systems to ensure that valuable recyclable materials are collected and kept in circulation. We’ve made good progress advancing recycling in the Southwest U.S., and we look forward to seeing that continue.”
“The new equipment helps us increase our tonnage and diversion rates so that we’re diverting more waste from the landfill and into efficient recycling systems,” said Jerry Schuber, Director of Solid Waste and Recycling, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. “We have a goal of increasing diversion tonnage to 25% of solid waste generated. The new equipment will help tremendously with achieving that goal.” Broken Arrow’s Recycling Program serves 35,000 households across the city