Indorama Demonstrates an Ongoing Commitment to Sustainability and Circular Economy Practices
Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, one of the world’s leading chemicals producers, is committed to sustainability and circular economy practices. This has been acknowledged through International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC+) across various sites, which offer a diverse range of recycled and bio-based products.
Indorama Ventures’ subsidiary Avgol recently completed a $100 million investment in a new production line in Mocksville, U.S., which delivers cutting-edge Reicofil bi-component high-loft spunlaid nonwoven capacity. This market-driven innovation aligns with current industry trends and helps customers respond to the needs of end-consumers in the baby diaper, adult incontinence, and feminine care sectors.
Indorama Ventures has 45 fiber manufacturing locations in 18 countries including Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Israel, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Russia, Thailand, and the U.S. In addition, several countries like China, Germany, India, Indonesia, and the U.S have multiple production sites.
IFJ spoke with Vipin Kumar, Chief Commercial Officer of Indorama Ventures Thailand, on their efforts.
International Fiber Journal: Please provide a history of your company.
Vipin Kumar: Aloke Lohia started his entrepreneurial journey in Thailand in 1994 as a producer of worsted wool yarns. The company also started a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plant in the same location and, in 2003, made its first overseas acquisition in the U.S. By 2010, we achieved our ambition to become the global leader in PET. We listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
During this journey, Indorama Ventures also acquired plants producing polyester fiber. The first polyester fiber plant was acquired in 1997 in Thailand and then in other countries. Initially we began by producing only polyester staple fiber (PSF) and filaments, mainly for textile applications like apparel and home textiles, but later expanded the fiber portfolio into other industrial applications like mobility, hygiene, and nonwoven.
Then there was a drive towards sustainability in the last 10 years at Indorama Ventures. So that’s when we started not only providing sustainable products to customers, but also working to reduce our carbon footprint, water consumption and electricity consumption.
IFJ: Please share details about the fiber manufacturing infrastructure?
Vipin Kumar: Indorama Ventures has 45 fiber manufacturing locations in 18 countries like Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Israel, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Russia, Thailand and USA. Several countries like China, Germany, India, Indonesia, and the U.S have multiple production sites.
IFJ: What are the key business areas for textiles within Indorama Ventures?
Vipin Kumar: We have three business areas. We have three business areas: Nonwoven Fibers and Textiles, Mobility, and Nonwovens. Within Nonwoven Fibers, we deliver fibers for nonwoven applications in hygiene, industrial, filtration, and many other industries. These fibers can be either Mono Polyester, Mono PP or Bi-Component.
Within the Mobility business area, our core portfolio includes tires and airbags. For instance, high-tenacity yarns and tire cord fabrics are included.
Within airbags, we produce yarns and fabrics, either polyester or nylon. One specialized product is our one-piece woven (OPW) for side airbags, which doesn’t require cutting and sewing of different layers but instead is made as one piece.
We also manufacture yarns, which are used in industrial applications like conveyor belts or industrial fabrics like parachute fabrics. These are all high tenacity yarns which can be polyester, polyamide, rayon or Aramid.
The third business area named Nonwovens is the Avgol business, headquartered in Israel, which we acquired in 2018. Here, we manufacture spunlaid nonwovens whose raw material is mainly polypropylene (PP). These fabrics mainly find application in the hygiene segment, particularly baby care and feminine care products. These nonwovens are also used in many other applications, including industrial filtration and medical textiles. We also supply laminated nonwoven fabrics, which are primarily used in medical textile applications.
IFJ: Please share details of Indorama Ventures’ commitment to recycling.
Vipin Kumar: Indorama Ventures has grown to be the largest PET recycler. Within Indorama Ventures’ CPET business segment, a majority of the products that we manufacture from recycled PET go into bottling applications because our customers, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Nestle, etc., require it. We also manufacture fibers and filaments from recycled PET. However, both the beverage and textile markets have their individual sustainability requirements.
While there is legislation in place that requires a certain amount of recycled content in PET bottles and packaging, similar legislation does not yet exist for the textile industry. Also, to produce consistent, high-quality polyester fiber out of a mechanical recycling process, there is a need to do better cleaning of used PET bottles and larger lots are needed. This means an increase in the cost of recycled polyester fiber.
The capability of clothing brands to pay a premium for these recycled fibers is limited. And so, while all top global brands talk about sustainability, very few are ready to pay a premium. That’s why the industry needs to move towards circular textiles. Here, a lot of developments are happening. And that can only be done through advanced recycling, where the monomers of the polyester fiber are separated and returned into new fibers.
However, since this is a chemical reacting process, the process is more energy intensive. The process, too, has many more steps because first depolymerizing needs to be done, after which repolymerizing is done. But of course, the feedstock is very sustainable compared to crude oil. And despite all the energy being consumed, it still has lower carbon footprint than crude oil, but comes at a higher cost versus fossil-based products.
So, when you compare the cost of recycling PET bottles and the circularity of textiles, the cost of circular textiles is higher. Many clothing brands and Indorama Ventures, too, are collaborating and engaging with several start-ups and scale-ups to boost advanced recycling. Indorama Ventures has a dedicated team,
a venture group based in Milan, which scouts for scale-ups that are active in developing solutions or technologies in advanced recycling and the development of bio-based products, and also all kinds
of sustainable feedstock for all businesses of Indorama Ventures including fibers.
IFJ: Did recycling and sustainability become buzzwords due to regulations?
Vipin Kumar: Everyone in the industry finds living up to their sustainability commitments challenging because of the cost issue. The industry is working hard to bring the textile recycling process to a commercial scale. Indorama Ventures is engaged in driving that development. Regulations will help the drive towards a circular textile industry, just as it helped the beverage industry in the past.
IFJ: Have any new fiber or nonwoven products been launched recently?
Vipin Kumar: In nonwovens and specifically for our hygiene business area, brands seek softness, good absorbency and odor retention. Indorama Ventures’ subsidiary Avgol recently announced the startup of a nonwovens production line in the U.S, which targets high-loft nonwoven fabrics that respond to consumer needs for extremely soft, highly comfortable absorbent hygiene products.
In addition, Avgol has installed a state-of-the-art 3-layer lamination line that further expands the company’s nonwoven composite capabilities. Engineered with precision temperature controls, high-speed bonding technology, and an integrated quality inspection system, this advanced machine efficiently fuses three layers to produce lightweight, durable composites with exceptional strength and consistency.
Product development is a continuous process within one-piece woven technology. For tires, we have developed what we call single-end cords, where instead of producing a tire cord fabric from the yarn, the yarn can be directly used to manufacture the tire.
Within construction applications, we are working on our mono PP fibers, which could be used to replace some of the existing fibers, which are not necessarily thermoplastic. They could be glass fibers or other fibers which can be used for reinforcement. We are also working on reinforcement by using our thermoplastic fibers.
IFJ: Do you have innovation teams in each vertical or is there a common innovation team for the whole group?
Vipin Kumar: We have a centrally driven R&D team, but we also have dedicated innovation teams for each business area because each business area is distinct. For example, a mobility R&D team cannot work on R&D in hygiene.
IFJ: How important is the sustainability factor for your company?
Vipin Kumar: Indorama Ventures has successfully achieved International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC+) for four fiber plants. This marks a significant milestone in the company’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and circular economy practices. Across its entire business, a total of nine Indorama Ventures sites are ISCC+ certified, offering a diverse range of sustainable products, including PTA, PET chips, fibers, and fabrics.
ISCC+ is a globally recognized standard for the sustainable production of biomass, and bio-based products, including recycled content. This certification ensures that materials are sourced and processed responsibly, reducing the environmental impact and promoting a circular economy.
These certifications reinforce our commitment to expanding our portfolio of sustainable fibers for the tire and automotive industries, including airbags. Our new range of recycled and bio-polyamide and recycled PET will help our customers achieve their CO2 footprint goals with certified traceability of raw materials.
IFJ: Can you let us know the key trends in consumer demand and the growth trajectory of the worldwide textile and clothing market, when concerning fibers? Also please share key trends in various nonwoven products
Vipin Kumar: We expect a demand compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4%. Megatrends differ from market to market. In Lifestyle (apparel, home textiles), urbanization and sustainability are key business drivers, while in Mobility the need for performance, safety and sustainability remains outstanding. Looking at the hygiene market, ageing populations across the world, drive growth, along with an increasing need, for wellbeing and special care.
IFJ: Indorama’s vision is to be a world-class, sustainable chemical company producing indispensable chemistry that touches billions of lives every day. How do you plan to achieve this vision?
Vipin Kumar: While we consider consistent product and service quality a must in everything we do, we go even further. We collaborate closely with key customers to drive profitable, market-led innovation for a fully circular economy and create strong bonds with partners along the entire value chain to give our products a new life. As a result, we bring affordable quality, safety, comfort, and wellbeing to billions of people globally every day, from newborns to the elderly.
IFJ: What are your expectations for the future growth and opportunities in fibers, PET recycling, and nonwoven products in global markets?
Vipin Kumar: In 2025, we are commercializing products from our new production line in Mocksville, U.S., which has given us new capabilities in super soft sustainable nonwovens solutions. More capacity expansions are planned for the coming year, for example in the airbag and high-performance tire sector. We also continue to invest in meaningful, market-driven innovations in close collaboration with strategic customers who are market leaders in their own space. Regarding recycling, we have put in place dedicated resources to screen the landscape of advanced recycling technologies. Our target is to play a leading role in driving the textile industry towards truly circular solutions with a focus on bio-based and recycled solutions.
