Finland-headed energy and forest industry technology provider Valmet Oyj has announced that it will supply drying technology to the Spinnova-Suzano joint venture textile fibre plant currently under construction in Jyväskylä, Finland. The commercial-scale facility will produce "SPINNOVA" fibre, and is the first step towards scaling production volumes to one million tonnes annually within a decade.
Based in Finland, Spinnova Oy has developed a breakthrough technology for making textile fibre out of cellulose or cellulosic waste streams, such as textile or food waste, without the use of harmful chemicals, zero waste, and minimal water use and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
Brazil-headed Suzano S.A. on the other hand is the world’s leading eucalyptus pulp producer and one of Latin America’s largest paper producers with exports to more than 100 countries. The company has an installed annual capacity of 10.9 million tonnes of market pulp and 1.4 million tonnes of paper.
Spinnova and Suzano recently announced a EUR 22 million investment to build the first commercial-scale SPINNOVA fibre production facility in Finland. Spinnova’s annual capacity could be 50 000 tonnes of textile fibre by 2024.
First commercial plant underway
The construction of the factory has already been started in Jyväskylä and it is expected to be completed at the end of 2022. In the joint venture, Spinnova is the exclusive technology provider, while Suzano ensures the supply of the needed raw material, certified micro-fibrillated cellulose (MFC).
The first factory is a great start to realizing the vast, global opportunity of this innovation. We believe the Spinnova Technology will be highly scalable, and we support the ambition to ramp up the production in our joint venture to more than one million tonnes annual volume of SPINNOVA fibre within 10 years, said Vinicius Nonino, Suzano’s New Business Executive Officer.
Spinnova has sought a technology partner that can globally support its scaling plans and has chosen Valmet to provide the drying technology for its first commercial production line.
We have created a modular technology that is easy to scale and set up around the world. That’s why we can also scale according to the pace of demand, instead of having to take a big risk at every scale, as is the case with complex chemical processes. Valmet is a good partner in this project due to their proven technology and long experience in scaling up processes, explained Janne Poranen, Spinnova’s CEO and Co-Founder.
Valmet provides the customer with drying machines with high-technology air dryers. The technology is utilized already today in paper and board making, and it is now adapted to cellulose-based textile fibre production. The value of the order has not been disclosed.
We at Valmet want to support our customer’s journeys in converting renewable resources into sustainable results. It is really exciting as this delivery is an excellent example of our strong focus on creating new technological innovations, and how we can create new opportunities in the fibre-based industry. We can use our existing technologies, and our know-how is essential when scaling up the production. We are constantly developing new products and technologies, too, said Jari Vähäpesola, Valmet’s Paper Business Line President.
