Lenzing Group is to invest more than €200 million in its production sites in Indonesia and China. Both investments are fully in line with Lenzing’s target to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions per ton of product by 50% by 2030.
In China, the company will establish the first wood-based fiber complex independent of coal as an energy source. Using natural gas-based cogeneration, Lenzing will reduce CO2 emissions at the site by more than 200,000 tons. At the same time, a line of standard viscose will be converted to make 35,000 tons of Tencel to convert the plant into a 100% wood-based specialty fiber operation by the end of 2022.
In Indonesia, Lenzing will reduce its CO2 emissions by increasingly using biogenic fuels. Additional investments to reduce emissions to air and water will make this facility fully compliant with the EU Ecolabel by the end of 2022. This will convert standard viscose capacity into Ecovero branded fibers for textile applications and Viscose Eco for personal care and hygiene products. As a result, the site in Indonesia will also become a pure specialty viscose supplier by 2023.
Stefan Doboczky, CEO of the Lenzing Group, said, “With our ambitious climate targets towards a zero-carbon future, we are pioneers in entire manufacturing industry and especially in the fiber sector. These investments are a substantial step towards our strategic targets for 2024.”
By avoiding or reducing the use of fossil fuels at the two sites, the Lenzing Group will reduce CO2 emissions by more than 320,000 tons in total. In addition, the investments allow Lenzing to reduce its total sulfur emissions by more than 50% compared to 2019.
