cyclion energy

What cyclion energy does

Cyclion Energy is an Australian climate-tech startup founded in November 2022 and headquartered in Brisbane, with a regional office in Makati City, Philippines. The company develops and deploys modular waste-to-energy systems that convert mixed municipal solid waste (plastics and biomass) into oil, which can be refined into diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) or used to generate electricity. Its core proprietary technology is the patent-pending Cyclion Catalytic Fluid (CCF), a green-chemistry catalyst system using specially selected molten salts that liquefy mixed waste at less than 310°C and atmospheric pressure, eliminating the pre-sorting step required by mechanical recycling and avoiding the higher temperatures of pyrolysis, incineration, and gasification. The integrated system comprises a trommel, a liquefaction vessel, and a separation tank, with algae tanks for water and exhaust purification. Cyclion targets government bodies and large enterprises as primary customers, with a flagship Letter of Intent signed with the Philippines' National Development Company (NDC) in October 2023 and a corporate-funded 10 TPD Manila plant backed by a Big Four-validated financial model targeted for completion by year-end 2025.

Cyclion's commercial model combines facility development and operation (waste processing fees plus sale of fuel and electricity), technology licensing to government and enterprise partners, and SAF production as an emerging higher-value product line. Distribution is enterprise field sales, primarily direct engagement with governments and industrial partners, supplemented by an expanding network of university R&D collaborations (QUT, James Cook University, University of the Philippines, Monash University with ARC funding) that provide third-party technical validation. The company also pursues retail capital through equity crowdfunding on the Birchal platform. Cyclion is pre-revenue, founder-led (Philip Major), and privately held with no disclosed institutional venture backing; it operates with a small team and has not disclosed headcount.

The company has faced execution friction: a planned 50 TPD demonstration plant scheduled for end of 2024 has no disclosed completion status, and NDC leadership changes delayed release of public funding in the Philippines, prompting a pivot to privately funded projects. As of June 2025, Cyclion is building a regional pipeline of SAF projects across the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand, two of which have cleared technical due diligence with petrochemical partners. Revenue, headcount, and commercial contract values are not disclosed.

Name

cyclion energy

Legal name

Cyclion Holdings Pty Ltd

Website

https://cyclion.energy

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Cyclion Energy is an Australian climate-tech startup that converts mixed municipal solid waste (plastics and biomass) into diesel, sustainable aviation fuel, and electricity using a proprietary low-temperature catalytic liquefaction technology, serving government bodies and large enterprises in Southeast Asia and Australia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waste-to-Energy Systems

NAICS

Chemical Manufacturing (325)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Cogeneration Services & Small Power Producers (4991)

akta.pro primary industry

Waste Gasification (MSW/RDF/biomass-to-syngas) (EUAAAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Chemical/Advanced Recycling (Pyrolysis, Depolymerization, Solvolysis, Gasification) (EUAIAKAC), Waste-to-Energy CHP (Municipal/Industrial Waste Incineration) (EUACAKAC)

Keywords

• Waste-to-energy systems
• Catalytic liquefaction technology
• Sustainable aviation fuel
• Municipal solid waste processing
• Modular processing systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Waste Processing and Energy Generation: Cyclion designs, develops, and operates waste-to-energy processing facilities that convert municipal solid waste into diesel fuel and electricity. Revenue generated from processing fees and sale of produced fuel/energy to fuel stations and electricity grids.
2. Technology Licensing: Licensing of proprietary Cyclion Catalytic Fluid technology and processing systems to government bodies and private enterprises for construction and operation of their own waste-to-energy facilities.
3. Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF): Production and sale of Sustainable Aviation Fuel derived from waste-to-energy conversion process, expanding revenue streams beyond diesel and electricity.
4. Equity Crowdfunding: Capital raising through equity crowdfunding campaigns on Birchal platform, offering ownership stake to retail investors in exchange for funding.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cyclion designs, develops, and operates modular waste-to-energy processing facilities that use its proprietary Cyclion Catalytic Fluid (CCF) technology to convert mixed municipal solid waste (plastics and biomass) into diesel fuel, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), and electricity at low temperature (<310°C) and atmospheric pressure. The system accepts unsorted mixed waste and uses specially selected molten salt catalysts and algae-tank-based emissions purification. The Cyclion technology is also offered through licensing arrangements to government bodies and private enterprises.

Product overview

Cyclion Energy offers a unified waste-to-energy system consisting of the Cyclion Catalytic Fluid (CCF) technology as the core proprietary process, supported by modular processing components including the liquefaction vessel, trommel system, and separation tank. The system uses 'Green Chemistry' to convert municipal solid waste (plastics and biomass) into oil at temperatures below 310°C and atmospheric pressure, without requiring pre-sorting. The oil output can be refined into fuels including diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), or converted to electricity. The modular architecture allows scaling from small community installations to large commercial plants processing over 1000 tonnes per day.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cyclion System A modular, scalable waste-to-energy processing system that converts mixed municipal solid waste into diesel fuel, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), or electricity through proprietary catalytic liquefaction technology operating below 310°C and atmospheric pressure. Designed for government bodies, large enterprises, and remote or urban communities, with modules scalable from 50 TPD to 1000+ TPD.
• Cyclion Catalytic Fluid (CCF) Proprietary next-generation catalytic fluid using green chemistry and ionic fluids that liquifies mixed plastics and biomass, converting them into oil that can be refined into diesel fuel, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), or electricity. Specially selected molten salts provide low toxicity, low melting points, low volatility, and strong thermal stability. Licensed to government bodies and private enterprises for use in their own waste-to-energy facilities.
• Waste-to-Energy Facility Operations Design, development, construction, and operation of waste-to-energy processing facilities for government bodies and large enterprises. Cyclion processes municipal solid waste into diesel fuel and electricity, generating revenue from processing fees and sale of produced fuel and electricity to fuel stations and electricity grids. Facilities range from 50 TPD demonstration plants to 1000+ TPD commercial plants.
• Cyclion Technology Licensing Licensing of proprietary Cyclion Catalytic Fluid technology and processing systems to government bodies and private enterprises for construction and operation of their own waste-to-energy facilities. Licensing generates royalty and license fee revenue and enables partners to deploy Cyclion's modular waste-to-energy systems under their own operational arrangements.
• Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Production Production and sale of Sustainable Aviation Fuel derived from the Cyclion catalytic liquefaction waste-to-energy conversion process. The output fuel expands Cyclion's revenue streams beyond diesel and electricity, targeting petrochemical partners in Southeast Asia. Two projects have cleared technical due diligence with petrochemical partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• Converts 12,500 tonnes of plastic waste into 2 million litres of diesel fuel in approximately two weeks
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• James Cook UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2025New R&D partnership with James Cook University to expand R&D capabilities. Cyclion is preparing to deploy a 1TPD demo plant at the university to validate processing of e-waste, tyres, and medical waste while expanding Australian footprint.
• University of the PhilippinesminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2025New R&D partnership to expand research network and capabilities. Part of expanded R&D activities following successful SAF breakthrough demonstration.
• Monash UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2025Australian Research Council funding managed by Monash University supporting Cyclion's R&D activities. Part of expanded research network with ARC funding.
• National Development Company (NDC)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Cyclion signed a Letter of Intent with NDC, the Philippines' leading state-owned enterprise, to establish recycling programs and bring Cyclion's waste-to-energy technology to the Philippines. The partnership anchors the first processing facility to process 50 tonnes per day, with follow-on plans for a AU$150M plant processing 900 tonnes per day. The NDC partnership is described as pivotal in helping Philippines reduce dependence on imported fuel.
• Sea World FoundationcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 August 2023Cyclion partnered with Sea World Foundation for marine conservation. The partnership supports sustainability for future generations through sponsorship, enabling the foundation to continue education, rescue, and rehabilitation programs while raising public awareness on marine pollution problems caused by plastic waste.
• Queensland University of Technology (QUT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2023Cyclion partnered with QUT for proof-of-concept testing of biomass and plastic liquefaction technology. QUT conducted groundbreaking experiments demonstrating successful liquefaction of waste streams at low temperature and pressure. QUT is commissioned to demonstrate, assess, and optimize the technology at laboratory scale and further develop and scale up the technology.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Velocys: Velocys provides Fischer-Tropsch technology for converting waste and biomass into SAF and diesel. It targets the same downstream fuel markets (especially SAF) that Cyclion's CCF-derived oil is aimed at.
• Brightmark Energy: Brightmark builds and operates plastic-to-fuel and RNG facilities using pyrolysis and gasification. It is a direct competitor in waste-to-fuel and targets similar municipal and enterprise customers in North America and internationally.
• Plastic Energy: Plastic Energy operates commercial-scale pyrolysis plants converting mixed plastic waste into oils for new plastic production. It is the closest direct competitor to Cyclion in advanced/chemical recycling of mixed plastics to fuels, although it relies on higher-temperature thermal pyrolysis rather than Cyclion's low-temperature catalytic liquefaction.
• Sierra Energy: Sierra Energy commercializes a gasification technology that converts mixed waste into synthesis gas and fuels. It targets municipal solid waste and operates in the same waste-to-fuel category as Cyclion, though using higher-temperature gasification.
• Agilyx: Agilyx develops chemical recycling technology converting mixed plastics back to crude oil feedstock. Like Cyclion, it focuses on converting hard-to-recycle waste into fuel/feedstock streams and partners with petrochemical companies for offtake.
• Envion Industries: Envion developed a low-temperature, modular plastic-to-crude-oil system targeting distributed deployment. Its emphasis on lower operating temperatures and modular scalability overlaps with Cyclion's positioning.
• Fulcrum BioEnergy: Fulcrum converts municipal solid waste into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) via gasification and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. It is a relevant peer for Cyclion's SAF ambitions and overlaps on the feedstock-to-jet-fuel value chain.

Broad incumbents

• Eastman Chemical: Eastman operates a commercial-scale chemical recycling facility (methanolysis) for polyester plastics. It is a broad incumbent with an established waste-to-feedstream capability that Cyclion would compete against for advanced recycling feedstock and licensing partnerships.

Emerging players

• Resynergi: Resynergi operates modular microwave-assisted catalytic depolymerization units for mixed plastics, with smaller distributed footprints. It is an emerging player using a different catalytic approach but competes for the same small-to-mid scale waste-to-fuel deployments.
• LanzaTech: LanzaTech uses gasification and microbial fermentation to convert waste carbon into fuels and chemicals including SAF. It is an emerging adjacent player in waste-to-SAF and competes for the same aviation-fuels offtake market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 cyclion energy