EANS-News: Lenzing AG Lenzing invests in new TENCEL® fiber plant in the USA
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corporate news transmitted by euro adhoc. The issuer/originator is solely
responsible for the content of this announcement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Company Information
- State-of-the-art 90,000 tons TENCEL® fiber plant to be built in Mobile,
Alabama
- Investment of EUR 275 mn - operations to start in the first quarter of 2019
- Strengthening of technical expertise by creating a new Management Board Role -
Heiko Arnold appointed Chief Technology Officer
Lenzing - The Lenzing Group aims to increase the share of specialty fibers as a
percentage of revenue to 50 percent by 2020. Following the previously announced
expansion plans for Lenzing, Heiligenkreuz (Austria) and Grimsby (Great
Britain), the Supervisory Board of Lenzing AG approved yesterday the investment
for a TENCEL® fiber 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® fiber
plant in the world, it will set a new milestone in the history of lyocell
fibers. The investment volume will total USD 293 mn (EUR 275 mn). The new plant
will utilize the latest technological standards and is scheduled to start in the
first quarter of 2019.
The Lenzing Group currently has a worldwide production capacity of 222,000 tons
per year of TENCEL® fibers. The new plant in Mobile plus the already announced
debottlenecking projects at the other TENCEL® fiber sites will increase the
total TENCEL® fiber capacity by more than 50 percent 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 percent revenue from specialty fibers by 2020", explained Lenzing
CEO Stefan Doboczky. "This expansion also underscores our commitment to all our
TENCEL® fiber customers, who continue to make their products even more
sustainable using TENCEL® fiber, the world's most sustainable botanic fiber,"
added Doboczky.
The disciplined implementation of the Lenzing's expansion program 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 today 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 realization of major investment projects and in operational excellence make
Arnold a perfect match for the challenges faced by Lenzing", explained Bästlein.
Photo download:
https://mediadb.lenzing.com/pindownload/login.do?pin=W2LWF
PIN: W2LWF
Further inquiry note:
Lenzing AG
Mag. Waltraud Kaserer
Vice President Corporate Communications & Investor Relations
Tel.: +43 (0) 7672 701-2713
mailto:w.kaserer@lenzing.com
end of announcement euro adhoc
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
company: Lenzing AG
A-A-4860 Lenzing
phone: +43 7672-701-0
FAX: +43 7672-96301
mail: office@lenzing.com
WWW: http://www.lenzing.com
sector: Chemicals
ISIN: AT0000644505
indexes: WBI, ATX, Prime Market
stockmarkets: official market: Wien
language: English