Infinited Fiber Company plans to build €220 million plant in Finland

Infinited Fiber Company, a circular fashion and textile technology company, is searching for a site in Finland to develop a flagship factory to manufacture its regenerated textile fibers for the global market. By September, Infinite Fiber Company will have decided on a venue.

The entire production of the plant is destined for export. Infinited Fiber Company is actively negotiating offtake deals with a number of major fashion and textile brands, with the expectation that agreements will be signed by the end of 2021, ensuring the factory’s entire production capacity for many years.

The flagship plant’s overall assets are expected to be about 220 million euros. The new review of funding options for the plant by Infinited Fiber Company is expected to be completed shortly. In 2024, the plant is expected to be operational.

Co-Founder and CEO of Infinited Fiber Company, Petri Alava said that global fashion brands are showing a strong interest in their circular Infinna™ textile fiber, so they decided to build their own plant to meet this demand. He adds that though technology licensing is still a big part of their long-term plan, this plant would help them get Infinna to the global apparel and textile industry faster in the short to medium term.

Infinited’s technology transforms cellulose-based raw materials such as cotton-rich textiles, used cardboard, corn, and wheat straw into Infinna, a unique, luxury textile fiber with the natural, soft look and feel of cotton. The company currently runs pilot facilities in Finland’s Espoo and Valkeakoski, each with a nominal capacity of 150 metric tonnes per year. The proposed flagship factory would have a 30,000 metric tonne annual capacity and use cloth waste as feedstock.

Alva said that Finland has a long tradition of cellulose-based industries, high technical skills, and a strong desire to become a circularity pioneer. Right now, they’re looking at a few possible sites around Finland where the local infrastructure supports their plans.

Andritz, an international technology company, will be a major supplier of the new plant’s process machinery.

The president and CEO of Andritz Oy, Kari Tuominen said that they’re excited to be collaborating with Infinite Fiber to develop new bio-based fabrics for textiles made from waste! They at ANDRITZ see cloth waste recycling as a new and exciting use field for their equipment. For the mechanical and chemical treatment of textile waste, they have the right equipment in their diverse product line.

He adds that ANDRITZ will deliver broad companies for their clients as a leading provider to the pulp and paper industry. From 2025, textile waste recycling will be obligatory in the EU, and they’re excited to be a part of producing new bio-based fabrics from textile waste and other cellulose-based materials.

The plant will receive the raw material from the full-scale textile waste refining plant that Lounais-Suomen Jätehuolto Oy (LSJH) is planning in the Turku region of Finland, which is owned by 17 municipalities in South-West Finland. In collaboration with other municipally-owned municipally owned waste treatment firms, LSJH’s plant will handle all end-of-life textiles from Finnish households.

Every year, more than 92 million metric tonnes of textile waste are produced worldwide, with the majority of it ending up in landfills or incinerators. At the same time, demand for textile fiber is growing, with Textile Exchange forecasting a 30% increase in global textile fiber demand to 146 million metric tonnes by 2030.