Connect with us

Technology

Suzano Selects Avondale Global Gateway as Gulf Coast Hub, Bringing Regular Wood Pulp Imports Back to Louisiana for First Time in More Than 30 Years

Published

on

Five-year agreement establishes Avondale Global Gateway as a key Gulf Coast terminal for Suzano’s growing North American operations

AVONDALE, La., April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Avondale Global Gateway (AGG) and Suzano today announced a five-year terminal services agreement that will bring regular wood pulp imports back to Louisiana for the first time in more than 30 years.

Under the agreement, AGG will serve as one of Suzano’s terminals in the Central Gulf Coast for their wood pulp shipments arriving from Brazil, to be distributed across North America by rail. The first vessel is scheduled to arrive at AGG in the first week of May this year.

The agreement marks a significant milestone for both Louisiana and Suzano, the world’s largest pulp supplier and one of Brazil’s biggest exporters which has been present in the American market for over 40 years. Suzano’s decision also aligns with its continued expansion in the region, including its 2024 acquisition of mills in Arkansas and North Carolina from Pactiv Evergreen. As part of its North American growth strategy, Suzano selected Avondale following a two-year evaluation process focused on logistics efficiency, infrastructure, and long-term scalability. The Avondale operation will support this strategy by creating a more centralized and efficient logistics footprint on the Gulf Coast.

“An efficient and resilient supply chain is essential to our business, and Avondale offers the combination of river access, rail connectivity, port infrastructure, and operational flexibility we were looking for,” said Juliana Vizintim, Operations Executive Manager at Suzano. “This partnership strengthens our Gulf Coast logistics platform and enhances supply assurance and efficiency for our customers across North America. At Suzano, we believe it is only good for us if it is good for the world, and we view this milestone as a foundation for long-term value creation—benefiting the local community, our business partners, and our customers. Suzano and Avondale share a common vision focused on collaboration, growth, and building a sustainable future together.”

To support the new operation, AGG has completed major upgrades to 245,000 square feet of warehouse space, including new concrete flooring, five additional loading doors, loading platforms, overhead awnings, and a laser fire detection and suppression system. These improvements were made specifically to meet Suzano’s operational requirements.

In parallel, a $13 million rail expansion is underway at Avondale, funded in part through Louisiana Economic Development’s FastSites program. Together with other site improvements, total investment tied to the Suzano operation is expected to exceed $20 million over time. The project is also expected to support 50 full-time jobs.

“Bringing wood pulp back to Louisiana is a major milestone,” said Adam Anderson, Chairman and CEO of T. Parker Host, parent company of Avondale Global Gateway. “This is new activity for the state, new jobs, and meaningful investment at Avondale. It reflects the kind of long-term industrial growth we believed this site could support and shows what’s possible when the right partner, infrastructure, and location come together.”

Rail service will play a central role in the operation, allowing cargo to move efficiently from vessel to warehouse to inland destinations across the United States. AGG worked closely with Union Pacific to align infrastructure and service capacity ahead of launch.

Since T. Parker Host acquired the former Avondale Shipyard in 2018, the 275-acre site has been steadily redeveloped into a multimodal logistics hub. Today, Avondale supports more than 600 workers across site operations, tenants, and active construction.

About Avondale Global Gateway

Avondale Global Gateway is a multimodal logistics and terminal facility located on the Mississippi River in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. Operated by T. Parker Host, the site offers deepwater dock access, large-scale warehousing, and Class I rail connectivity, supporting bulk and breakbulk cargo flows across North America. Learn more at www.avondaleglobalgateway.com

About Suzano

Suzano is the world’s largest pulp supplier, a major paper and packaging producer in the Americas, and one of Brazil’s largest employers.

Driven by a deep commitment to sustainability and innovation, Suzano produces responsibly grown raw materials that are exported to more than 100 countries, meeting global demand for bio-based solutions. These materials are used in everyday products that reach more than two billion people, including tissue, packaging, printing and writing paper, personal hygiene products, and textiles.

Founded in Brazil more than 100 years ago, Suzano operates across Latin America, North America, Europe, and Asia. The company’s shares are listed on B3 in São Paulo (SUZB3) and the New York Stock Exchange (SUZ). Learn more at suzano.com.br/en.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/suzano-selects-avondale-global-gateway-as-gulf-coast-hub-bringing-regular-wood-pulp-imports-back-to-louisiana-for-first-time-in-more-than-30-years-302759457.html

SOURCE Avondale Global Gateway

Continue Reading

Technology

Crab2B Makes AsiaWorld-Expo Debut, Connecting Hong Kong’s Mobile Wholesalers with Global Buyers

Published

on

By

HONG KONG, Oct. 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Crab2B, a pioneering B2B trading platform dedicated to mobile devices and digital products, will make its debut at the HKICEC Global Mobile Exchange Pavilion during the Global Sources Hong Kong Shows, opening at AsiaWorld-Expo on October 18, 2026.

Hong Kong has long been a major hub for electronics wholesale trade, but buyers still often rely on fragmented channels to identify suppliers. Crab2B was created to bridge this gap, bringing Hong Kong-based mobile and digital product wholesalers together on one dedicated B2B platform. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Crab2B combines the manufacturing strength of mainland China and the Greater Bay Area’s extensive supply chain capabilities with Hong Kong’s established global trading network. Together, these strengths enable Crab2B to simplify cross-border sourcing, connect buyers directly with suppliers and make international trade more accessible and efficient.

For its first appearance at a major industry trade show, Crab2B is bringing together more than 200 merchants already registered on the platform, marking a significant milestone in its development. The Crab2B booth is expected to attract electronics traders from Southeast Asia, Europe, the Middle East and beyond. Visitors will be able to discover the app’s capabilities through live demonstrations, register on the platform and connect directly with participating merchants to explore business opportunities.

A buyer who experienced the Crab2B app shared: “With Crab2B, we no longer have to search far and wide for reliable suppliers. The platform brings Hong Kong’s mobile phone wholesalers together in one place, giving us greater visibility into available products and sourcing opportunities. Whether I’m at my desk or on the move, I can find products and connect with suppliers whenever I need to. For businesses like ours that source across borders, that kind of access makes a real difference. It saves time, reduces transaction costs and helps us do business more efficiently.”

Crab2B CEO Luo Yaohong said, “We want to be pioneers in cross-border B2B trading for digital products, creating new opportunities for Hong Kong’s wholesale industry. As Hong Kong places greater emphasis on developing digital trade, we’re addressing a longstanding gap in the market with a dedicated digital platform that connects Hong Kong’s electronics suppliers directly with buyers around the world. Our ambition is to make cross-border trading easier, faster and more accessible, while helping Hong Kong businesses reach new markets.”

The platform’s trade show debut is also attracting attention from international merchants, with exhibitors expressing interest in joining Crab2B to expand their reach into overseas markets. Meanwhile, merchants already registered on the platform are looking forward to the launch of its planned online marketplace, which will create further opportunities for sustained collaboration and business growth.

Building on this debut, Crab2B will remain firmly rooted in Hong Kong while expanding its connections with businesses around the world. The company will continue to enhance its platform with smarter sourcing tools, more comprehensive trading capabilities and an increasingly connected network of suppliers and buyers. By making it easier to discover products, establish business relationships and conduct cross-border transactions, Crab2B aims to open new opportunities for merchants of all sizes and help shape the next chapter of Hong Kong’s digital trade industry.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/crab2b-makes-asiaworld-expo-debut-connecting-hong-kongs-mobile-wholesalers-with-global-buyers-302911938.html

SOURCE Crab2B

Continue Reading

Technology

Canton Fair Buyers Alliance Launched as the 140th Edition Opens

Published

on

By

GUANGZHOU, China, Oct. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On October 15, the Canton Fair Buyers Alliance was officially launched at the Canton Fair Complex, marking a significant milestone as the fair celebrates the 70th anniversary of its founding.

More than 140 overseas buyers attended the launch ceremony, highlighting the fair’s enduring role as a bridge connecting global commerce with China’s export sector.

Speaking at the ceremony, Luís Vilariça, CEO of Joinco, Import & Export, Ltd., discussed his company’s long-standing relationship with the Canton Fair. Drawing on years of participation, he reflected on the growth opportunities created through cooperation with Chinese suppliers and highlighted the fair’s role in supporting international business development and global trade exchanges.

The ceremony also featured a joint declaration by alliance members. Representatives from five member companies read the statement in their respective native languages, underscoring the international character of the new organization. Additional members sent video congratulatory messages, joining the celebration and witnessing the official launch of the alliance.

The Canton Fair Buyers Alliance represents one of the fair’s key service innovations. Designed primarily for Fortune Global 500 companies, buyers from the world’s top 250 retailers and leading sourcing enterprises across a diverse range of markets, the alliance aims to offer members a platform for information sharing and resource coordination. The first cohort of alliance members includes 58 companies from 32 countries and regions across 5 continents. Through the alliance, members will gain access to a range of priority benefits spanning four major areas: services, events, resources and information.

 For more convenient attendance, please click here for pre-registration:

https://buyer.cantonfair.org.cn/register/buyer/email?source_type=16

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/canton-fair-buyers-alliance-launched-as-the-140th-edition-opens-302911896.html

SOURCE Canton Fair

Continue Reading

Technology

Bioethanol from human hair – Indian start-up’s solution to rising prices of grains and sugar

Published

on

By

GUJARAT, India, Oct. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In what could be called the beginning of the 5G (fifth-generation) of bioethanol or non-cellulosic bioethanol or non-sugar-based biofuels, an Indian start-up, Techofest Global, based out of Gujarat, has developed its own, indigenous, and patented technology for the production of bioethanol from waste human hair. Such processes would significantly reduce the employment of sugars, grains, and agricultural residues, which form the classical first- and second-generation bioethanol feedstocks. As a result, the rising fuel-vs.-food/fodder debate is anticipated to reduce, and instead, ethanol produced from municipal/industrial waste, after trials, can supplement the current supply being used as blends with presently retailed fossil fuels (E20, E27, etc.). 

As stated by Dr. Ravi, the founder-CEO of Techofest Global, the strategic priority and the USP of the start-up is industrial symbiosis, which, typically, involves an ecosystem of up-cycling/valorising the effluents of an industry, thereby creating a value-chain for residues often lacking an end-of-life. With more than three decades of experience in designing customized nuclear fusion reactors for international programmes, such as ITER, JET/UKAEA and SST-1, Dr. Ravi, a seasoned mechanical engineer, spearheads the start-up’s patented technologies’ scale-up and commercialization.

Two biochemical engineers, Dr. Navnit – the former CTO, and Dr. Kabilan – the former CEO of Biomakerz, Chennai, are the brains behind the current technology/process portfolio of the joint-venture between Techofest Global and Biomakerz. They have been working on biorefineries’ process intensification for more than a decade. “Having foreseen the fuel-vs-fodder/food competition as early as the year 2015, we began developing techno-economically feasible and viable in-vitro metabolically-engineered bioprocesses for scaling-up ethanol production from municipal waste streams between 2019–2021”, says Navnit. After developing operational technologies for international biofuel organizations, serving process engineer roles with certain biorefineries-related OMC R&D’s of India, Dr. Navnit, presently works for a premier academic institution.

An on-going fermentation trial at the Techofest Global-Biomakerz JV’s R&D facility

Techofest Global has developed and tested, in its R&D JV’s pilot-facility of ~100-L, 3 innovative and cost-effective technologies, such as 5G ethanol production using human hair, used cooking oil (UCO), and enriched bio-methane production from disposed sanitary napkins.

“With massive CapEx and OpEx, 2G ethanol technology is facing a major commercialization bottleneck, owing to competition with food/livestock fodder, requirement of a cost-intensive pre-treatment procedure, and the requirement of cellulolytic cocktails, which have a poor recycle efficiency. The proprietary 5G SAFE process developed for the start-up circumvents the mentioned constraints, and instead, utilizes a single-stage saccharification followed by fermentation, and records over 85–90% biocatalyst recovery. Likewise, the proprietary SIM process for bio-methane production, exclusively developed for the start-up, is 2x faster with improved intermittent feeding cycles and continuous gas harvest”, says Navnit.

“With on-going pre-commercialization trials, the proprietary ethanol and bio-methane processes of ours are soon being commercialized”, says Ms. Bhumika, the co-founder and the corporate advisor of the start-up. Furthermore, Mr. Ronak pilots the organization’s global market entry and commercialization frontier.

Techofest Global’s veteran Principal Technology Advisors include: Dr VS Tripathi, former Joint Director, DRDE Gwalior, Dr B S Munjal, former Director, Structures and Thermal group, SAC/ISRO, Academician and Advisor CIKS-Dharohar, GTU, and Dr AV Santhanababu, former Scientist at Satish Dhawan Space Centre. With on-going R&D activities, Dr. Munjal says, “the start-up is striving to provide a unique solution along the lines of the Atmanirbhar and Viksit Bharat Vision 2047”.

Media Contact: www.techofestglobal.com; e-mail: info@techofestglobal.com; contact person: The PR team of Techofest Global.

Photo: https://mmx.prnewswire.com/media/MS2015507/Picture1.jpg?id=OA3024965&token=5vT9XuZXAG0yamsZlRrsBAiUapaplm73wYH8NIfU0xCtOlj76dueXcTw2Eb-3w

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/bioethanol-from-human-hair–indian-start-ups-solution-to-rising-prices-of-grains-and-sugar-302911813.html

Continue Reading

Trending