Green tie-ups: Nilit/Samsara to build PA6.6 recycling facility in Asia; GAIL/Petron Scientech tie-up for bioethylene project in India

Australian recycling start-up Samsara Eco and Israel-headquartered nylon apparel maker Nilit are to explore the construction of a nylon 6.6 textile-to-textile recycled polymer production site in Southeast Asia, to help close the loop on nylon 6,6. 

Roughly 4 million tonnes/year of nylon 6,6 and it is one of the most widely used fibres in the performance apparel and fashion industries. However, it is notoriously difficult to recycle and when blended with other fibres like spandex, it increases the challenge. Together, Samsara Eco and Nilit are seeking to address this issue head-on.

Aiming to be operational by late 2026, the anticipated facility will be capable of recycling textile waste, producing high-quality recycled nylon 6,6 polymers, for textile brands and manufacturers to seamlessly use in their existing supply chains to create new textile fabrics.

Samsara Eco has developed a patented enzymatic recycling method called EosEco for breaking down plastics to their core molecules, which can then be used to recreate brand-new plastic. EosEco can recycle a range of feedstock inputs, including coloured and blended textiles like nylon 6.6 with spandex.

EosEco, together with Nilit’s polymerisation, spinning and technology, will be able to create premium recycled nylon 6, 6 yarn for global consumption.

“Our vision is to deliver climate repair through infinite recycling,” explains Paul Riley, CEO/Founder of Samsara Eco. “One of the ways we’re achieving this is by creating the first circular pathway for nylon 6.6.

“Nilit’s partnership with Samsara Eco is a critical step in our multi-pronged strategy to provide the apparel market with premium nylon 6.6 products that have lower environmental impact,” adds Ilan Melamed, general manager at Nilit. “Implementing textile-to-textile recycling solutions will substantially decrease global carbon emissions and reduce the 92 million tons of textile waste added to landfills annually.”

Launched in 2020 in partnership with the Australian National University (ANU) and the backing of Main Sequence and Woolworths Group, Samsara Eco has to date raised more than A$160 million in funding from local and global investors including Breakthrough Victoria, DCVC, Hitachi, lululemon, Temasek, Wildcard Ventures and Wollemi Capital.

Meanwhile, in other news, state-owned gas utility firm GAIL (India) has signed an agreement with US-based biofuel producer Petron Scientech Inc to jointly explore setting up of a 500 kilotonnes/year bio-ethylene plant in India. The memorandum of understanding provides for the two firms looking at setting up the plant based on bioethanol in a 50:50 joint venture, GAIL said in a statement.

GAIL and Petron will jointly undertake feasibility studies to ascertain technical viability and financial prospects of the project. Both the parties endeavour to secure investment approval from their respective management for investment in the project and forming a joint venture company.

Rajeev Kumar Singhal, Director (Business Development), GAIL, said “GAIL is a proud member of India’s clean energy infrastructure and is always committed to incorporate initiatives for sustainable development of the nation. We are elated to enter into this strategic relationship with Petron, a pioneer in bio-ethanol to bio-ethylene technology. The MoU signifies a major step towards enhancing sustainable practices and advancing the bio-economy in India. The skills and strengths of both the companies would create a synergy for achieving the objective of MoU. The collaboration between GAIL and Petron is poised to not only foster technological advancements but also drive economic growth and environmental sustainability in India.”

GAIL, a Maharatna Central public sector enterprise, is India’s leading natural gas transmission and distribution company with gas transmission & distribution pipelines, processing and petrochemicals plants besides interest in upstream oil & gas blocks and LNG regasification terminals in India.

Meanwhile, Petron specialises in setting up biomass and grain processing biorefinery projects to produce ethanol, bio-ethylene, bio-chemicals (ethylene oxide/mono ethylene glycol, methanol) and various bio-fuel projects worldwide. Petron along with its affiliates and partners brings technology experience in production and supply of setting up biorefinery projects.

Petron has technologies for producing both bio-ethanol and bio-ethylene and it commands 90% global bio-ethylene technology market.

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