Startup Cyclize  Plastic Waste as a Substitute for Natural Gas in the Chemical Industry

The Stuttgart-based DeepTech startup Cyclize aims to make natural gas obsolete in the chemical industry. The key ingredients: plastic waste, CO₂—and a former Covestro executive. 

Whether plastics, pharmaceutical precursors, textiles, or automotive components: The majority of European industry relies on the chemical processing of natural gas as a key carbon-based raw material. High energy and raw material prices, as well as geopolitical uncertainty surrounding imports, are putting European production sites under increasing pressure. 

Cyclize addresses this core problem with an industrial solution: Using patented plasma technology, the startup converts hard-to-recycle industrial and plastic waste into exactly the basic chemical building blocks that have previously been expensively derived from natural gas. The process replaces fossil fuel imports right at the beginning of the value chain and ensures the necessary raw material resilience for chemical companies.  

Tried-and-True Natural Gas Substitute Set to Make Its Way into Chemical Plants

Its feasibility in an industrial setting has already been demonstrated: A containerized plasma system is currently undergoing continuous testing on the grounds of the PCK refinery in Schwedt. In collaboration with Siemens, Cyclize has also developed a modular energy system that supplies electricity from the medium-voltage grid to the plasma reactors. The plasma drivers developed by Cyclize achieve an efficiency of up to 98 percent.

The fact that the industry is seeking such solutions is evident from the commercial demand at the laboratory and pilot scales: According to Cyclize, the company has already demonstrated, on behalf of its customers, that 20 different industrial waste streams are suitable as raw material substitutes. Planning is currently underway for the construction of the first large-scale commercial plant (First-of-a-Kind / FOAK) at a German chemical site.

Expanding the Management Team for Scaling

The Stuttgart-based DeepTech startup is also laying the groundwork, in terms of personnel, for the large-scale replacement of fossil natural gas in chemical production. Dr. Klaus Schäfer, who served as Chief Technology Officer of Covestro AG from 2015 to 2023, has been Chief Industrialization Officer at Cyclize since October 1, 2026. 

Schäfer, who has been involved with the company as an investor and chairman of the advisory board since its seed funding round in 2024, will thus assume direct responsibility for integrating the technology into European chemical parks. He will continue to serve as chairman of the advisory board.

“The European chemical industry is facing a historic restructuring. We must break free from our dependence on imported natural gas if we want to remain competitive,” explains Schäfer. Cyclize offers the industry a market-ready alternative.  

“The transition from pilot operations to the chemical park is what determines whether a deep-tech startup achieves a commercial breakthrough. Klaus Schäfer has been supporting our company since the first round of financing; he has overseen chemical production, managed one of Germany’s largest chemical parks, and knows what a new technology needs to succeed there,” explains Maike Lambarth, co-founder and CEO of Cyclize. 

Successful Financing 

Funding from the “exist Forschungstransfer” program laid the foundation for the company’s founding in 2023. This was followed in 2024 by an oversubscribed seed round, which, with just under five million euros, enabled the founders to both build the pilot at the Stuttgart Technical Center and assemble a team—now numbering 20—with extensive technical expertise.  

The seed round was led by UVC Partners, with participation from Aurum Impact High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and UnternehmerTUM Funding for Innovators. In addition, angel investors have invested in the company.