Austria’s Lenzing goes ahead with building world’s largest lyocell fiber plant in Thailand
Austrian industry group Lenzing AG, which makes cellulose fibers used in textiles, is now going ahead with the construction of a lyocell fibers plant in Prachinburi, Thailand, with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes at an investment of around €400 million. The project is part of Lenzing’s expansion strategy to invest more than €1 billion in new production facilities for lyocell fibers in the coming years, the company said on June 25 at a press conference in Vienna.
Plans for the plant were originally announced two years ago, and the schedule was to make a definite decision by the first quarter of 2018 and, in this case, complete construction by the end 2020. However, it took a bit longer to get the necessary board approvals, permits and licenses.
As it stands now, construction work for the plant, the largest of its kind in the world, will start in autumn this year, while production is expected to commence in the second half of 2021. The location of the facility remains unchanged in an industrial park 150 kilometers east of Bangkok.
“Lenzing aims at implementing the project in a strategic partnership with an international engineering company also chosen for its capability to support Lenzing’s further organic growth worldwide,” said Heiko Arnold, Lenzing’s chief technology officer.
“Integrated teams including an international and highly-skilled Lenzing workforce will work together with the engineering contractor, which will be selected soon,” he added.
Lenzing halted a planned US expansion in September last year, blaming rising tariffs between the US and China, where much of the project’s production was destined. The group mothballed a $322-million project in Alabama to focus on setting up a production facility in Thailand.
In turn, Lenzing can benefit from Thailand’s favourable trade agreements with major Asian economic blocks. Thus, over the coming years, Lenzing has plans to further expand at the new site in Thailand, which has space for several other plants. The investment in the first phase already includes the general infrastructure for future expansion, the company noted.
Thailand’s Board of Investment said it has been strongly supporting Lenzing’s project from the beginning.
Lenzing has a strong focus on sustainability with its fibers made of cellulose, a natural component of wood. It said it plans to halve its 2017 CO2 emissions by 2030 and stop emitting CO2 by 2050.
Austrian industry group Lenzing AG, which makes cellulose fibers used in textiles, is now going ahead with the construction of a lyocell fibers plant in Prachinburi, Thailand, with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes at an investment of around €400 million. The project is part of Lenzing’s expansion strategy to invest more than €1 billion in new production facilities for lyocell fibers in the coming years, the company said on June 25 at a press conference in Vienna. Plans for the plant were originally announced two years ago, and the schedule was to make a definite decision by the first quarter...
Austrian industry group Lenzing AG, which makes cellulose fibers used in textiles, is now going ahead with the construction of a lyocell fibers plant in Prachinburi, Thailand, with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes at an investment of around €400 million. The project is part of Lenzing’s expansion strategy to invest more than €1 billion in new production facilities for lyocell fibers in the coming years, the company said on June 25 at a press conference in Vienna.
Plans for the plant were originally announced two years ago, and the schedule was to make a definite decision by the first quarter of 2018 and, in this case, complete construction by the end 2020. However, it took a bit longer to get the necessary board approvals, permits and licenses.
As it stands now, construction work for the plant, the largest of its kind in the world, will start in autumn this year, while production is expected to commence in the second half of 2021. The location of the facility remains unchanged in an industrial park 150 kilometers east of Bangkok.
“Lenzing aims at implementing the project in a strategic partnership with an international engineering company also chosen for its capability to support Lenzing’s further organic growth worldwide,” said Heiko Arnold, Lenzing’s chief technology officer.
“Integrated teams including an international and highly-skilled Lenzing workforce will work together with the engineering contractor, which will be selected soon,” he added.
Lenzing halted a planned US expansion in September last year, blaming rising tariffs between the US and China, where much of the project’s production was destined. The group mothballed a $322-million project in Alabama to focus on setting up a production facility in Thailand.
In turn, Lenzing can benefit from Thailand’s favourable trade agreements with major Asian economic blocks. Thus, over the coming years, Lenzing has plans to further expand at the new site in Thailand, which has space for several other plants. The investment in the first phase already includes the general infrastructure for future expansion, the company noted.
Thailand’s Board of Investment said it has been strongly supporting Lenzing’s project from the beginning.
Lenzing has a strong focus on sustainability with its fibers made of cellulose, a natural component of wood. It said it plans to halve its 2017 CO2 emissions by 2030 and stop emitting CO2 by 2050.
