Altri invests €75 million to gain relevance in the textiles market

Altri, a Portuguese company that specialises in producing cellulosic fibers, particularly eucalyptus pulp, and manages forests sustainably, is to invest over €75 million to convert its Biotek unit in Portugal to produce fibres that can be used for the textiles industry and become a reference producer in Europe.

The investment is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 and the group’s installed production capacity will be 300,000 tons per year, destined for foreign markets. “Our goal is to continue to diversify into markets that we already know and that we think have significant potential for growth and value generation,” says José Soares de Pina, CEO of Altri.

The soluble fibres market is growing 4% a year and it is estimated that the market’s value will grow from €6Bn now to €7.7Bn by 2033. The demand for soluble fibres is led by Asia which buys around 6.5 million tonnes.

Soluble fibres in non-clothing textiles, also known as bio-soluble or low bio-persistent fibres, are designed to dissolve in biological fluids like water or bodily fluids. This property allows them to be safer for human health and the environment compared to traditional synthetic fibres, as they don’t accumulate in the lungs or body.

They are used in various applications, including fireproof textiles, insulation materials, and filtration components.