Accsys licenses wood to China

20 November 2007

Accsys-owned company Titan Wood has signed a license agreement with Diamond Wood China, granting rights to manufacture the company’s trademarked Accoya wood in China.

In return for an initial payment of €9.5m, Diamond Wood will receive three years’ exclusivity and a total 500,000m³ nameplate capacity at Diamond's own facilities as well as sub-licensing agreements within China. Further technology fees of around €90m will be payable as Diamond Wood develops project plans and secures regulatory approval.

Accoya wood is produced using a patented process that effectively converts sustainably grown softwoods and non-durable hardwoods into what the company describes as a much sturdier 'new wood species'. It uses a Wood Acetylation, a process which increases the amount of 'acetyl' molecules in wood, changing its physical properties to make it resilient to rot and cracking.

Willy Paterson-Brown, executive chairman of London-headquartered Accsys, said: ‘We are obviously delighted to announce our first full license agreement, with Diamond Wood China. This is not only the culmination of a huge amount of work by both parties, but it is also a step-change for Accsys as it underwrites significant licensing volume and propels Accsys into new levels of commercial expectations. We look forward to working very closely with Diamond Wood to assist its development and also in conjunction with them to protect the intellectual property surrounding our wood acetylation technology'.

Greg Lee, president of Diamond Wood, said: ‘We see enormous opportunities for Accoya wood in the Chinese market, one of the fastest growing markets in the world, and have moved fast to secure exclusive production rights. We are planning a series of projects with different volumes and are currently preparing details for our first project in Nanjing, in conjunction with Nanjing Chemical Industry Park (NCIP).’