Acelon Chemicals & Fiber Corp. Breaks Ground for New Plant

Taipei, May 18, 2012 (CENS)--The Acelon Chemicals & Fiber Corp., the world's first mass-producer of long solvent-spun cellulose fibers, recently broke ground for a new plant in Ershui, Changhua, central Taiwan for the production of Lyocell filament (® Greencell) and Lyocell non-woven cloth. The company estimates that the new plant will cost around NT$13 billion (US$433 million) and have an annual production value of about NT$ 14.5 billion (US$483 million).

W. T. Zhou, president of Acelon, explained that Lyocell filament is a kind of environment-friendly, biodegradable fiber made of wood pulp through a crystalline spinning process. The solvent used can be recycled, and the entire production process is nontoxic and environment-friendly.

Zhou also reported that the first-stage investment in the new plant will be NT$1 billion (US$33 million), resulting in an annual Lyocell filament output of about 1,000 tons with a value of NT$350 million (US$11.6 million); eventually, the figures are expected to rise to 20,000 tons and NT$7billion. The plant's yearly output of Lyocell non-woven cloth is projected at 15,000 tons with a value of NT$7.5billion (US$250million).

The price of 80-denier Lyocell filament is NT$360 (US$12) per kilogram. The price of Lyocell non-woven material, calculated at a weight of 40g per square meter, is NT$500 (US$16.67) per kilogram. Both prices are higher than those of nylon filament and processed nylon filament.

Acelon currently runs three factories, located in the central Taiwan areas of Yanpu, Fangyuan, and Douliu, with a total monthly output of about 5,800 tons of nylon yarn. The company is not only a leading producer of nylon yarn but is also Taiwan's largest supplier of nylon textured yarn, with a monthly output of up to 1,800 tons.

The company has already produced small amounts of Lyocell filament and Lyocell non-woven cloth at its Yanpu plant (with output of Lyocell filament amounting to only 3-4 tons monthly). Zhou said that in the initial stage, products from the new facility will be supplied to manufactures in Taiwan and Mainland China.

Today, about 3.5 million tons of long filament is produced every year by a process that may generate pollution. Acelon hopes to establish a market base of environment-friendly products by steadily boosting its output of Lyocell filament and Lyocell non-woven cloth.