DowAksa Advanced Composites Holdings and the Nanotechnology Centre of Composites, a joint project between Holding Company Composite and the Fund for Infrastructure and Educational Programs have signed a new investment agreement for 134 Million Rubles ($4.3 Million USD).
This agreement is another important milestone in the parties’ cooperation, emphasising the intentions outlined in the MOU which was signed at the 2013 World Economic Forum and in the terms of investments agreement signed at the Composites without Borders Conference in November of last year.
Mehmet Ali Berkman the Deputy Board Chairman of DowAksa commented on the new deal by saying;
It is very important to bring the strengths of DowAksa and NCC together to address the global challenges in the market of carbon fiber composites which are increasingly used in the energy, construction, automotive, and oil and gas industries. The Russian government emphasizes the importance of the composite industry by establishing NCC which also provides R&D and pilot manufacturing support to start-ups and others who are willing to make innovations in equipment related to the composite industry. DowAksa’s engineers together with their counterparts in NCC will develop revolutionary scientific applications of composite materials which will help to increase the efficiency, productivity and value-add of them. An additional benefit coming from these applications will be reduced emissions to help protect the environment.
The Nanotechnology Centre of Composites will leverage existing partner engineering assets to help develop leading positions in Russia, CIS and other countries for prominent sectors such as oil & gas, mineral extraction and offshore exploration. The first production line in the Center, equipped with a high-tech scientific laboratory and a one-of-a-kind multi-axial machine, has been launched to produce polymer composite materials used in construction, energy, and IT. The second production line is to be launched soon. The Center will showcase the latest technologies of polymer composites processing in Russia, supplying both the Russian domestic and global markets.
Holding Company Composite was founded in 2009 with the objective to develop a market for composites in Russia. The Holding unites companies producing high-modulus and high-strength carbon fibre and carbon fibre-based fabrics of ROSATOM, as well as manufacturing high-quality prepregs from domestic raw materials. The products are used in aerospace, wind energy, construction, transportation, shipbuilding, power industry, and medicine.