Progressive textile-to-textile regeneration company Reju has been awarded €135 million under the Dutch government’s Nationale Investeringsregeling Klimaatprojecten Industrie (NIKI) program. 

 

The funding will accelerate the development of Reju’s industrial-scale Regeneration Hub at Chemelot Industrial Park, covering both the investment phase and ongoing operations. The award marks a pivotal step toward the company’s final investment decision.

 

“We are grateful to the Government of the Netherlands and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate for supporting the scale-up of commercial technologies that can deliver measurable emissions reductions and accelerate the transition to a truly circular textile industry,” said Patrik Frisk, CEO of Reju. 

 

“This award is a strong vote of confidence in our technology and our team. At Chemelot, we will deliver circular raw materials at scale, reduce emissions across textile value chains, and establish a replicable blueprint for circular textiles in Europe.”

 

The NIKI program, the Dutch government’s flagship initiative for industrial decarbonization and circularity, supports projects aligned with both national and EU circular economy objectives. Reju’s Regeneration Hub will expand a textile-to-textile process that converts hard-to-recycle polyester-containing textiles into high-quality circular intermediates for new polyester production, keeping residual textiles out of landfills and incineration.

 

The future facility will process post-consumer textiles, turning them into Reju Polyester, which delivers approximately 50% lower carbon emissions than virgin polyester. The material will then feed into downstream supply chains to produce yarns and fabrics for consumer products.

 

Reju’s project emphasizes industrial integration, energy and resource efficiency, and fully traceable circular supply chains, maximizing the replacement of fossil-based inputs. Chemelot Industrial Park was chosen for its industrial ecosystem, shared utilities, logistics infrastructure, and proximity to research and innovation hubs—factors that will support a smooth ramp-up and the replication of the model across Europe.

 

Owned by Technip Energies and using technology from IBM Research, Reju aims to unlock a circular system for polyester textiles, regenerating and recirculating post-consumer materials to reduce the environmental footprint of the textile industry.