The global shipping industry is built upon a structural paradox. Each year, over 700 ships reach the end of their life — and 80% of them end up beached on South Asian shores, in dangerous, opaque conditions that do not comply with European standards. Meanwhile, Europe is heading towards a 15 Mt scrap metal deficit for its electric arc furnaces by 2035. The resource exists. What was missing was the industrial link to process it on the continent.
Marine Metals addresses this gap by building the first European land-based, automated, and 100% electric ship recycling facility. Their disruptive technology — tungsten carbide cable cutting, robotization, and optical sorting (infrared, laser, 3D) — enables the transformation of ships into certified and traceable recycled steel (E3++) for electric arc furnace steelmakers, with a recovery rate of ~95% and premium quality justifying a higher resale price than the market average.
The Next Step
Marine Metals is entering a decisive phase: finalizing the Pre-FEED, validating the profitability of the cutting process under representative conditions, securing a port site in the North Sea, and preparing the funding round that will launch the FEED phase. Founded in 2021, backed by several years of R&D and €7.1M raised to date, the startup operates at TRL 5/6 and aims for its first industrial unit by the end of the decade.
Why 21st by CentraleSupélec?
Moving from technological validation to industrial deployment is often the most demanding challenge for a disruptive deep tech company. This is precisely where 21st by CentraleSupélec comes in: by providing Marine Metals with access to the LMPS laboratories to validate its cutting technology, an industrial network rooted in European steelmaking to accelerate initial off-takes, and non-dilutive funding support commensurate with a capital-intensive project of this scale.
Focus on the Founders
Hugo De Stoop, Co-founder and CEO, Toufitri Akdime, Co-founder and CFO, Frank Geerdink, Founder and CTO
#ShipRecycling #CircularEconomy #GreenSteel #Deeptech #EUIndustrialSovereignty
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