The CAPTE 2025 call for projects is part of ADEME’s Circular Economy Fund. It supports solutions designed to accelerate plastic circularity in France, particularly through new recycling technologies and better integration of recycled plastic materials into finished products.

The scheme covers both study and experimentation phases as well as industrial investments. It is aimed at stakeholders seeking to improve the quality, traceability and performance of recycled plastic materials while building more innovative value chains.

CAPTE 2025 supports projects that help increase the share of recycled plastics used in industry. The aim is to reduce the use of virgin materials and develop processes capable of treating plastic waste streams that are still insufficiently recovered.

The call for projects covers in particular:

• the development of mechanical, chemical or physico-chemical recycling technologies;
• the production and incorporation of recycled plastic materials;
• the structuring of more efficient industrial value chains.

Two main types of operations may be supported. The first area covers studies, diagnostics, experiments and demonstrators. It may finance feasibility analyses, performance tests, techno-economic or environmental studies, as well as the design of processes integrating recycled plastic materials into industrial applications.

The second area focuses on industrial investments. This may include creating, modernising or expanding advanced recycling lines, improving the quality of recycled plastic materials, or installing equipment for advanced sorting, quality control, decontamination, separation or purification of plastic streams.

Investments may also support increased production or incorporation capacity for recycled plastics, as well as digital solutions for flow traceability and environmental certification.

The call for projects primarily targets plastics that are difficult to process using conventional methods. Complex, multilayer or insufficiently recovered plastics are therefore especially relevant.

Projects may cover in particular:

• complex and multilayer plastics;
• technical polymers such as ABS, PA, PC or PMMA;
• waste from industrial, automotive, electronic or construction sectors;
• streams not covered by extended producer responsibility schemes or still insufficiently recovered.

Some operations are excluded from the scheme. CAPTE 2025 does not fund projects limited to waste collection, transport or logistics. Standard mechanical recycling operations for plastics already well covered by the market, such as bottle-grade PET, are also not targeted.

Projects with no real innovation, no demonstrated environmental benefit, projects aimed solely at regulatory compliance, and energy or organic recovery operations are also ineligible.

The scheme is open to several types of stakeholders involved in plastic recycling and the circular economy. Industrial companies of all sizes may apply, including SMEs, mid-sized companies and large groups.

Start-ups and innovative organisations developing advanced recycling processes are also eligible. Projects may also be led by consortia bringing together industrial companies, technical centres, laboratories or converters. Local authorities and mixed associations may participate through partnerships with private operators.

For studies and experiments, funding rates may reach:

• 80% of eligible expenses for small companies;
• 70% for medium-sized companies;
• 60% for large companies.

The indicative ceiling ranges from €50,000 to €100,000 depending on the nature of the project.

For industrial investments, funding rates may reach:

• 60% for small companies;
• 50% for medium-sized companies;
• 40% for large companies.

The maximum amount may reach up to €3 million in support, depending on the type of project and its level of innovation.

Applications opened on 16 May 2025. The closing date is 30 January 2026.

The funding decision is generally issued within 3 to 6 months after the complete application file has been submitted.

Applications are assessed against several criteria. Environmental impact plays a central role, including emissions reduction, material efficiency and savings in virgin resources.

Technological relevance is also decisive. Projects must demonstrate sufficient maturity, with a TRL of 7 or above, as well as scale-up potential. Economic strength, identified market opportunities, established partnerships and the quality of the technical and financial structure will also be reviewed.

A strong application should clearly demonstrate the environmental and industrial value of the project. Environmental gains per euro of funding, industrial feasibility and complementarity with existing processes are important points to highlight.

It is also useful to provide evidence of strong partnerships with suppliers, customers or laboratories. The quality and traceability of the targeted recycled plastic material streams should be clearly justified. ADEME’s Empreinte Projet tool may also support the assessment of environmental impact.

For questions, the national ADEME contact provided is: aap.recyclageplastique@ademe.fr.

Applications must be submitted through the agirpourlatransition.ademe.fr/entreprises platform.