Nanollose finishes milestone June quarter well positioned for growth

Nanollose signs partnerships, showcases its eco-friendly Nullarbor lyocell fibre at a global fashion event and remains in strong financial position in milestone Q4 FY22.

Australia-based biomaterial technology company Nanollose (ASX:NC6) has made significant progress on its business development initiatives during Q4 FY22, including signing multiple collaboration agreements.

Nanollose completed the first pilot scale spin in February of its forest-friendly, sustainable Nullarbor-20 lyocell fibre with its strategic partner Birla Cellulose.

Part of the Aditya Birla Group, Birla Cellulose is a global leader in sustainable fibres and operates with an integrated value chain from forest plantations to fibre production.

Since the spin, Nanollose has been making the most of the availability of 250kg of Nullarbor-20.

Multiple collaboration deals

Nanollose’s Nullarbor fibres continued to attract interest from leading international fabric and fashion companies. The availability of fibre from its successful pilot spin in February resulted in several collaboration agreements during the quarter.

Among the deals was one of the world’s largest fashion retailers Industria de Diseño Textil, S.A. (INDITEX), whose brands include Zara, Pull&Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho and Zara Home.

Another major agreement was with Paradise Textiles, the materials science hub of the Alpine Group, for the development and manufacture of Nullarbor yarns and textiles.

The company also has an agreement with leading sustainable denim manufacturer Orta, to develop denim materials incorporating Nanollose’s Nullarbor fibres.

The company also secured an agreement to develop next generation vegan leather from microbial cellulose with materials innovation company von Holzhausen.

Launch of Lee Matthews garment at global fashion summit

Australian designer Lee Mathews designed a garment made from the Company’s eco-friendly Nullarbor lyocell fibre for the global sustainability in fashion industry event, the Copenhagen Global Fashion Summit in June.

Launching at a widely respected global industry event provided Nanollose with the opportunity to unveil the new garment and promote Nullarbor to a wide audience of industry professionals.

The collaboration with Lee Mathews (www.leemathews.com.au) a leading Australian womenswear designer with an extensive Australian and global footprint, provides further credibility to the work Nanollose has been undertaking to advance sustainable fashion initiatives with leading global fashion brands.

The Global Fashion Summit is the leading international forum for sustainability in fashion and fosters industry collaboration to drive positive impact.

Attendees featured influential voices in the industry including commentators, visionaries, researchers, politicians, designers, environmentalists and journalists.

Shared Booth with Birla Cellulose – Première Vision in Paris

Following Q4, Nanollose was invited to join Birla Cellulose at its exhibition booth at the Première Vision trade fair in Paris from July 5-7.

Première Vision brings together all players in raw materials and services for production of apparel, bags, shoes, and fantasy jewellery, to effectively assist fashion professionals develop their collections.

Nanollose’s attendance alongside its strategic partner, Birla Cellulose, afforded the opportunity to jointly promote its fibre, and demonstrated Birla’s commitment to the project.

It also significantly increased the fashion and textile community’s awareness of Nanollose, and its unique, cutting-edge product.

In addition to exhibiting the Lee Mathews designed Nullarbor garment at the event, Birla Cellulose produced several dyed fabric samples for Nanollose to exhibit, prepared from the first Nullarbor-20 pilot spin.

Second pilot spin and other projects

During the quarter, Nanollose continued to progress work towards undertaking the second pilot spin of Nullarbor fibre, with a focus on increasing the scale.

The company anticipates that this work will provide both important technical information and generate significantly more fibre to progress ongoing projects with existing collaborators and new partners in different segments and industries.

Some refinement of its Jelli Grow seed germination medium has recently been made for potential customers who have requested a dry form of the product to reduce shipping costs.

During the quarter Nanollose received its second granted patent for Jelli Grow. The patent has now been granted in China and Japan, with it still pending in numerous other countries.

Nanollose continues to work in close collaboration with CelluAir to develop face masks. CelluAir in conjunction with researchers at QUT have successfully developed filter material using cellulose nanofibres with a low pressure drop suitable for use in surgical face masks and respirators.

Nanollose continues to work in close collaboration with CelluAir to develop alternate low-cost sources of cellulose nanofibres with appropriate properties to achieve both the filtration efficiency and low pressure drop required for good breathability.

Several microbial cellulose samples supplied by Nanollose have been evaluated by CelluAir and refinement of material is ongoing.

Milestone quarter to build on

Executive chairman Dr Wayne Best said Nanollose made significant progress on its business development initiatives during the quarter, capitalising on strong momentum gained from its successful first pilot scale spin.

“This quarter we have been in negotiation with and finalised collaborative agreements with several leaders in sustainable fashion to test and assess Nullarbor fibres for use in their production processes,” he said.

“These agreements are in line with our segment strategy, which will provide us with additional avenues for growth over the coming months.

“As we continue to gain an increased level of interest and host discussions with additional potential partners, I look forward to providing updates to our shareholders moving into the next quarter.”

This article was developed in collaboration with Nanollose, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.