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Fibres/​Yarns

Lenzing invests in new Tencel fibre plant in USA

The new facility will be the largest Tencel fibre plant in the world, it will set a new milestone in the history of lyocell fibres.

13th December 2016

Knitting Industry
 |  Lenzing

Knitted Outerwear, Intimate Apparel

Following the previously announced expansion plans for Lenzing, Heiligenkreuz (Austria) and Grimsby (UK), the Supervisory Board of Lenzing AG has approved the investment in a new Tencel fibre plant in the USA.

Lenzing now plans to construct a state-of-the-art plant with a production capacity of 90,000 tons per year at its site in Mobile, Alabama. The new facility will be the largest Tencel fibre plant in the world, it will set a new milestone in the history of lyocell fibres, the company reports.

The investment volume will total US$ 293 million (EUR 275 million). The new plant will utilise the latest technological standards and is scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2019.

Increasing share of specialty fibres

The Lenzing Group currently has a worldwide production capacity of 222,000 tons per year of Tencel fibres. The new plant in Mobile, in addition to the already announced debottlenecking projects at the other Tencel fibre sites will increase the total Tencel fibre capacity by more than 50% by 2019. The decision to build this plant in the US was supported by the good infrastructure at our Mobile site and attractive energy costs.

“This investment represents another major milestone in the implementation of our corporate strategy sCore TEN. It will bring us a big step further to reach our target of 50% revenue from specialty fibres by 2020,” explained Lenzing CEO Stefan Doboczky.

Lenzing CEO Stefan Doboczky. © Lenzing Group

“This expansion also underscores our commitment to all our Tencel fibre customers, who continue to make their products even more sustainable using Tencel fibre, the world’s most sustainable botanic fibre.”

New Management Board role

According to the manufacturer, the implementation of the Lenzing’s expansion programme is essential for driving the Lenzing Group’s organic growth agenda. Therefore, it was decided to create a new Management Board role, pooling together the key technical, operational and engineering responsibilities.

The Supervisory Board of the company appointed Heiko Arnold as the new Chief Technology Officer. In addition to a strong scientific and technical education, Arnold has gained many years of experience with BASF in the realization of major investment projects and continuous operational improvements as well as extensive know-how in Research & Development. He will be responsible for all technical departments in the Lenzing Group.

“We are pleased to welcome Heiko Arnold, a further expert with broad international experience, to Lenzing’s Management Board team,” commented Hanno Bästlein, Chairman of the Lenzing Supervisory Board. “Lenzing is on a successful, dynamic growth course with the development and implementation of the new sCore TEN corporate strategy, and that makes an increase in the Management Board to four persons a reasonable step. His 15 years of experience in Asia, in the realisation of major investment projects and in operational excellence make Arnold a perfect match for the challenges faced by Lenzing,” explained Bästlein.

www.lenzing.com

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