Coolrec
Coolrec (now Renewi E-Waste) is a European WEEE recycling company that mechanically processes discarded cooling appliances, household devices, and IT equipment into circular plastics and metals for industrial clients and OEMs across the Netherlands, Belgium, and France.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1990
- HeadquartersWaalwijk, Netherlands
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Coolrec does
Coolrec, now operating as Renewi E-Waste, is a European mechanical recycling company specializing in the treatment of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). The company transforms discarded appliances — primarily cooling appliances, small and large household appliances, and IT equipment — into high-quality circular materials including plastics, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, and recovered gases. It operates four advanced treatment facilities across the Netherlands (Dordrecht for cooling appliances and Waalwijk for WEEE-derived plastics), Belgium (Wandre under the Recydel SA partnership), and France (Lesquin under a collaboration with Vitamine T SAS). The Dordrecht site is one of the world's largest fridge recycling plants at 50,000 tonnes annual capacity, while Waalwijk hosts Europe's largest WEEE plastic recycling facility processing approximately 50 million kilograms per year.
The company's core technology centers on advanced mechanical treatment processes, including the specialized capability to recycle complex cooling appliances containing substances such as ammonia. R&D teams at each facility work with external stakeholders on lab testing, pilot projects, and the deployment of new processing techniques, indicating ongoing process improvement. Output streams — circular plastics and metals — are sold back into industrial supply chains to support closed-loop manufacturing for OEMs.
Coolrec generates revenue through two streams: fee-based waste processing services for industrial companies and OEMs seeking compliant WEEE disposal, and the sale of recovered circular materials. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The go-to-market is direct B2B enterprise sales targeting industrial firms and equipment manufacturers across Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and Germany. The business operates as a division within Renewi plc's Specialities segment, with stable JV relationships (10% minority stakes held by Intradel, Spaque, and Vitamine T) reinforcing its multi-country footprint.
Coolrec firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Coolrec
- Legal name
- Renewi plc
- Website
- https://coolrec.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1990
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Coolrec (now Renewi E-Waste) is a European WEEE recycling company that mechanically processes discarded cooling appliances, household devices, and IT equipment into circular plastics and metals for industrial clients and OEMs across the Netherlands, Belgium, and France.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Coolrec industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Electronic Waste Recycling
- SIC
- Refuse Systems (4953)
- akta.pro primary industry
- E-Waste (WEEE) Collection, Refurbishment & Recycling (IMAIAFAH)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Special Waste Transfer (Tires, Mattresses, Appliances) (BPALABAG), Universal Waste Management (Batteries, Lamps, Mercury Devices, Aerosols) (BPALAFAJ)
Keywords
Where Coolrec is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Waalwijk
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices4 records
Markets served
Coolrec business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Waste Processing Services: Fee-based processing services for industrial companies and OEMs to responsibly dispose of WEEE, transforming discarded appliances into circular materials.
- Circular Materials Sales: Sale of recovered circular materials including plastics, gases, ferrous, and non-ferrous metals derived from processed WEEE.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Coolrec product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Coolrec (now operating as Renewi E-Waste) specializes in the mechanical treatment of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and plastics. The company operates advanced treatment plants that transform discarded appliances into high-quality circular materials including plastics, gases, ferrous metals, and non-ferrous metals, serving industrial companies and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) across Europe.
Product overview
Renewi E-Waste (formerly Coolrec) operates as a key player in Europe's circular economy, specializing in Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) processing. The company transforms discarded appliances into high-quality circular materials including plastics, gases, ferrous, and non-ferrous metals. Operating under Renewi's Specialities division, the company runs advanced treatment plants across the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. The product portfolio centers on material recovery services with key offerings including fridge recycling (Dordrecht, 50,000 tonnes capacity), WEEE-derived plastic recycling (Waalwijk, Europe's largest at 50 million kg annually), and comprehensive WEEE processing across multiple facilities (Wandre at 65,000 tonnes, Lesquin at 22,000 tonnes). The circular materials produced—plastics and metals—are sold back to industrial manufacturers to close the loop on valuable resources.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Fridge Recycling
Quantifiable outcome
- 50,000 tonnes annual fridge recycling capacity
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Coolrec
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Coolrec technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Coolrec partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Recydel SAcoreStrategic partnership in Belgium where Intradel SCRL and Spaque SA each hold a 10% share. The Recydel facility in Wandre processes up to 65,000 tonnes of cooling appliances, small/large household appliances, and IT equipment annually.
- Vitamine T SAScoreCollaboration in France where Vitamine T SAS holds a 10% stake. Renewi E-waste France in Lesquin processes up to 22,000 tonnes of appliances and electronics annually.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Coolrec competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Stena Recycling: One of Europe's largest metals and electronics recyclers, with operations across multiple countries recovering ferrous and non-ferrous metals from WEEE and other waste streams. Comparable business model and European geographic footprint to Coolrec's circular metals and WEEE processing operations.
- MBA Polymers: Specializes in recovering engineering plastics from end-of-life electronics and electrical equipment. Highly comparable to Coolrec's Waalwijk WEEE plastic recycling business, with overlapping technology approach and customer base of OEMs seeking recycled-content plastics.
- Attero: Dutch WEEE and waste recycler operating in the Netherlands with overlapping appliance, electronics, and metal recovery capabilities. A direct regional peer competing for similar Dutch and European WEEE feedstock and OEM customers.
- Sims Lifecycle Services: Global IT asset disposition and WEEE recycler serving enterprise and OEM customers. Comparable in serving OEMs and processing IT equipment and small/large household appliances with similar circular materials output.
Emerging players
- Inashco: Dutch metals recovery specialist extracting non-ferrous metals from incineration bottom ash. Comparable in recovering valuable metals for the circular economy and serving industrial customers, though focused on a different waste stream than Coolrec's WEEE-centric model.
Broad incumbents
- Umicore: Belgian materials technology and recycling group with significant precious and base metals recovery from end-of-life electronics and catalysts. Comparable metals recovery outputs and OEM customer base, with deeper specialty metallurgy but narrower plastics/appliance scope.
- Veolia: Global environmental services giant with significant WEEE, metals recovery, and circular materials operations across Europe. Comparable customer overlap and circular materials product mix, though as part of a much broader waste, water, and energy portfolio rather than a WEEE specialist.
- Befesa: European environmental services company focused on recycling steel dust and aluminium salt slags, with growing circular economy capabilities. Operates industrial recycling facilities comparable in scale and feedstock complexity to Coolrec's plants, though with different end-of-life input streams.
- Suez: Major European environmental services and water management company with WEEE recycling capabilities. Overlaps with Coolrec on industrial waste processing and circular materials recovery, but at much broader portfolio scope.
Regional players
- Wecycle: Dutch WEEE compliance scheme that collects and routes e-waste from households and businesses to contracted processors including Coolrec itself. Functions as a key feedstock gatekeeper for Coolrec's Dutch operations and a comparable Netherlands-headquartered WEEE ecosystem player.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Coolrec social profiles
Digital presenceCoolrec financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Coolrec leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Coolrec subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Coolrec funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Coolrec M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Coolrec
What does Coolrec do?
Coolrec (now operating as Renewi E-Waste) specializes in the mechanical treatment of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and plastics. The company operates advanced treatment plants that transform discarded appliances into high-quality circular materials including plastics, gases, ferrous metals, and non-ferrous metals, serving industrial companies and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) across Europe.
Is Coolrec a public or private company?
Coolrec is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Coolrec founded?
Coolrec was founded in 1990. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Coolrec based?
Coolrec is headquartered in Waalwijk, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does Coolrec make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Waste Processing Services are the primary driver. The others are circular Materials Sales.
Who are Coolrec's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Stena Recycling, MBA Polymers, Attero and Sims Lifecycle Services. Inashco is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Umicore, Veolia, Befesa and Suez. Wecycle is listed as a regional player.
Does Coolrec have an API?
No public API is recorded for Coolrec.
What industry is Coolrec in?
Coolrec's product category is Electronic Waste Recycling. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAIAFAH, E-Waste (WEEE) Collection, Refurbishment & Recycling, with a secondary code of BPALABAG, Special Waste Transfer (Tires, Mattresses, Appliances). Its SIC code is 4953.