BioTerra

What BioTerra does

BioTerra is a Belgian environmental remediation and recycling company, operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the family-owned Group De Cloedt NV since 2003. Founded in 1996 following the Flemish Soil Decree, the company is headquartered operationally at a 13.5-hectare site in Genk along the Albert Canal and holds the Flemish government's Centre for Soil Decontamination (CGR) and Temporary Storage Place (TOP) certifications. The company processes approximately 1.25 million tons of contaminated soils, sludges, and mineral waste streams annually across five Belgian sites, serving both government bodies (waterway maintenance, port dredging, municipal remediation) and private industrial and construction clients.

The company's core technological asset is an in-house engineered wet separation plant (physico-chemical cleaning installation) commissioned in 2016, which converts complex mineral waste flows into high-quality recycled aggregates. A complementary €15M AggReMix mixing installation launched in September 2023 enables production of blended recycled construction products including sand cement, lean concrete, bound crushed stone foundations, stabilised sand, and screed. A closed-loop water purification system with 8,000m³ storage eliminates municipal sewer discharge. The company produces 21 distinct recycled material fractions, achieving recovery rates of up to 60% for sand and 15% for stone-like materials.

BioTerra generates revenue through three streams: professional services for soil and groundwater decontamination projects (typically contracted per-ton, e.g., PFOS soils at €50-80/ton), production and sale of recycled aggregates for construction (€35 million total revenue in the most recent fiscal year), and temporary storage and definitive storage services (Artilaval subsidiary with 2,000,000 tons capacity). Distribution is direct via a hub-and-spoke network: four TOP collection sites feed material by inland waterway to the central Genk processing facility. The company employs 45 people under CEO Wouter Vermin, who has led BioTerra since 1999. Certifications include ISO 9001/14001 at Genk and CO2-Performance Ladder Level 3 (2024) under the Group De Cloedt umbrella.

Name

BioTerra

Legal name

GROUP DE CLOEDT NV

Website

https://bioterra.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Short description

BioTerra is a Belgian environmental remediation and recycling company, subsidiary of Group De Cloedt, that processes 1.25 million tons annually of contaminated soils and mineral waste into recycled aggregates for government, industrial, and construction sector clients across Belgium and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Remediation Services

NAICS

Remediation Services (562910)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953)

akta.pro primary industry

Bioremediation & Phytoremediation (Enhanced Bioremediation, Natural Attenuation) (EUAIALAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Organics Collection & Processing (Composting/Anaerobic Digestion) (IMAIAFAF)

Keywords

• Soil decontamination services
• Recycled aggregates production
• Mineral waste processing
• Environmental remediation services
• Contaminated soil treatment

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Soil decontamination and processing services: Processing contaminated soil, mineral waste (road sweeping sand, sewage slurry, gully waste car wash sludge, sand blasting/grit, foundry sand, fines from C & D waste, bottom ashes, etc.) and carrying out full soil decontamination projects
2. Recycled aggregate sales: Production and sale of high-quality recycled aggregates (sand, gravel) for construction applications including concrete, foundation works, and building materials. Revenue of €35 million in the past fiscal year.
3. Temporary storage and treatment services: CGR (Recognised centre for soil decontamination) and TOP (temporary storage place) services for excavated soils and dredging sludges

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

BioTerra provides government-recognized soil and groundwater decontamination services, operating as a Recognised Centre for Soil Decontamination (CGR) and Temporary Storage Place (TOP) certified by the Flemish government. The company processes contaminated soils, mineral waste streams, and dredging sludges using its proprietary wet separation plant, and produces high-quality recycled aggregates under the AggReMix brand for the construction sector. BioTerra also offers definitive storage (DOP), sediment dewatering, and asbestos-contaminated soil processing services across multiple Belgian sites.

Product overview

BioTerra is a certified environmental remediation and recycling company that operates as a single integrated service platform rather than a modular software product. The core offering centres on soil and groundwater decontamination services, including the recognised Centre for Soil Decontamination (CGR) and Temporary Storage (TOP) facilities. The company's key technological capability is its wet separation plant (physico-chemical cleaning installation) that processes contaminated soils and mineral waste into high-quality recycled aggregates. BioTerra's main product lines include AggReMix (sand and aggregate mixtures, screed, stabilised sand, lean concrete, and bound crushed stone foundation) for the construction sector, alongside processing services for asbestos-contaminated soils, sediment dewatering, and definitive storage (DOP) through its Artilaval subsidiary. The company processes approximately 1.25 million tons of soils, sludges, and mineral waste annually across its sites in Belgium and operates a platform in France via AWS France.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AggReMix: Aggregates-Recycling-Mixing. A wide range of high-quality recyclates (recycled aggregates) for the construction sector, including pure recycled certified raw materials and mixtures of bound and unbound product compositions such as sand cement, lean concrete, bonded crushed stone foundation, and sand and granulate mixtures. Introduced in September 2023.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1.25 million tons processed annually across all sites
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DC IndustrialcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDC Industrial is the parent company of Bioterra. Bioterra collaborates with DC Industrial for full soil decontamination projects. DC Industrial provides integrated dredging and maritime construction services, while Bioterra handles environmental remediation and recycling.
• DC EnvironmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDC Environment is the sister company and contractor for soil and groundwater decontamination works, working together with Bioterra as the recognised service provider under the Flemish government certification system.
• EnconminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEncon guides Group De Cloedt's sustainability trajectory, conducting carbon footprint analysis, developing reduction measures, and facilitating workshops with senior management for strategic sustainability planning.
• BuildwiseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch centre collaborating with Bioterra for development of new recycled aggregate products and circular construction applications.
• DENUOminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBelgian federation representing waste and recycling sector. DC Industrial participates in Arena Climate & Circularity task force to develop sector-wide carbon reduction roadmap.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Envisan (DEME Group): Belgian environmental contractor within the DEME group, specializing in soil and sediment treatment, dredged material processing, and remediation — directly comparable to BioTerra's CGR/TOP activities and mineral waste washing operations.
• Jan De Nul Group: Belgian dredging, maritime, and environmental contractor with soil remediation and sediment treatment capabilities. Sister-company relationship (DC Industrial is a sister) makes the operating models, customer overlap, and regulatory regime directly comparable.
• Royal Boskalis Westminster: Dutch dredging and maritime services group with a substantial environmental division handling soil/sediment remediation and beneficial reuse of dredged materials. Closely comparable to BioTerra in serving port authorities and waterway agencies across Northwest Europe.
• Indaver: Belgian-headquartered waste management and industrial services firm treating hazardous and complex waste streams. Comparable to BioTerra in regulatory-driven waste treatment, sustainable materials recovery, and Belgian/European industrial client base.

Broad incumbents

• Renewi: European recycling and waste management company with operations across Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK. Comparable as a regional waste-to-materials incumbent, though Renewi focuses more on municipal/industrial waste streams than BioTerra's mineral-waste specialization.
• Suez: Major global waste management and water services group operating a broad portfolio of recycling, soil remediation, and circular-economy offerings across Europe. Overlaps with BioTerra on mineral waste valorization but serves a much wider scope.
• Veolia: Global environmental services group with waste management, recycling, and contaminated-site remediation capabilities. Overlaps with BioTerra on soil treatment and secondary materials production, but as a far larger, diversified incumbent.
• Holcim: Global building materials leader producing cement and aggregates. Comparable on the downstream market for construction-grade materials and on the secular shift to circular construction inputs BioTerra's AggReMix targets.
• Heidelberg Materials: Major European cement and aggregates producer with growing exposure to recycled and secondary construction materials. Comparable as a downstream buyer and competitor for specification-grade aggregates in the same Benelux/German markets BioTerra serves.

Regional players

• Heijmans: Dutch construction and infrastructure group active in circular construction materials and secondary aggregates. Comparable on the demand side of recycled aggregates, though focused downstream as a buyer/integrator rather than as a recycler.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCArKA3ieIrBWuscfkPBZeJA
• Facebookfacebook.com/bioterra.uy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bioterra

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about BioTerra