Latest news with #Alava
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Infinited Fiber names interim CEO as co-founder steps down
Petri Alava who has held the CEO position since co-founding Infinited Fiber in 2016 will remain involved with the company as senior advisor until the end of November. The company's current chief operating officer, Sahil Kaushik, has assumed the position of acting CEO beginning 1 June 2025, while the board of directors search for a permanent CEO replacement. In a LinkedIn post, Alava said that he will remain involved as one of the major shareholders and board observer. He said: 'Ten years is a long time to lead a growth company — and a natural point for change. I'm incredibly proud of the journey we've made as a team: we've built something truly valuable — a recycled cotton-like fibre with exceptional market fit, proven demand, and long-term partnerships. Now, with market dynamics shifting and Infinited Fiber entering a new strategic phase, it's the right time to pass the baton — from creating value to scaling it. I'm happy to support the team during the transition.' Alava has played a key role in positioning Infinited Fiber Company as one of the leaders in textile-to-textile cotton recycling over the last decade. His leadership saw the company's circular fibre Infinna gain substantial market traction through long-term offtake agreements worth more than €200m ($228.43m) with major fashion brands including Patagonia, PVH and H&M. Infinited Fiber Company board of directors chairman Andreas Tallberg said: 'Our product has been validated by the market — the value is now established. The next strategic priority is to turn that value into profitable industrial scale, by optimising cost and capital efficiency. We're grateful for the work Petri and the team have done and excited to begin the next chapter — with Sahil, who brings deep experience in scaling industrial production and driving efficiency in the chemical industry, now leading the transition.' Interim CEO Sahil Kaushik added: 'Infinna is a breakthrough innovation that's more relevant than ever. It's a privilege to lead this talented team, together with world-leading brands supporting us as investors. We have a clear path forward and a solid foundation for the next phase.' The company is keeping competitiveness as the focus of its next phase of industrial scale-up. Operational excellence and readiness for significant industrial investment are now prioritised, the company noted. In March last year, Infinited Fiber Company completed a €40m ($43.75m) development financing round with backers including the Inditex Group, Youngone, Goldwin and the CEO of Uniqlo-owner, Fast Retailing. "Infinited Fiber names interim CEO as co-founder steps down" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Planning to dredge the Burrard Inlet to maximize oil shipments is underway
An ocean pollution researcher and at least one First Nation are raising concerns about the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority's (VFPA) plan to dredge the Burrard Inlet. Dredging is when the bed of a body of water is dug out to make way for ships or for construction or cleaning purposes. Ocean researcher Juan José Alava told CBC's On The Coast that periodic dredging is common for navigation maintenance in the Inlet. However, he says he was surprised to hear that the port is planning to dredge for the purpose of maximizing oil tanker capacity. The VFPA plan is to maximize oil shipments from the port. Currently, Aframax tankers, a specific size of oil tanker, with a deadweight ranging from 80,000 to 120,000 metric tonnes, can carry loads up to 80 per cent, with the goal of increasing capacity to 100 per cent. However, doing so carries the risk of hitting the sea bottom. According to Alava, another risk is environmental harm. LISTEN | Burrard Inlet could be dredged to maximize oil shipments: Alava is the principal investigator for the Ocean Pollution Research Unit at the University of British Columbia, and says that this development is deeply concerning because of the potential effect on water quality, aquatic life, and First Nations culture in the area that is dependent on the Inlet and the Second Narrows channel. "At what environmental cost, for a single tanker, do you want to dredge the Burrard Inlet? What about the First Nation communities that are living there?" He says that as a scientist who studies marine toxicology, the risk of dredging to increase oil tanker capacity can have a drastic impact on the environment if there is an oil spill, citing lessons learned from the Exxon Valdez southern Alaska spill 36 years ago. Alava says that you can still find oil remnants in B.C. from that spill today, so environmental impact assessments and Indigenous consultation are necessary. Tsleil-Waututh Nation's Chief, Jen Thomas, said in a written statement on May 8, that no formal engagement has happened about dredging the Burrard Inlet that runs past the nation. Thomas says that the nation firmly opposed the Trans Mountain Expansion Project, adding that the Government of Canada built it despite the nation's informed decision not to consent to the project. "Tsleil-Waututh has a sacred, legal obligation to protect, defend and steward our Inlet. We hold inherent and Constitutionally-protected Indigenous title and rights to this area." Under UNDRIP, the B.C. government has a duty to obtain free, prior and informed consent from First Nations when pursuing projects in their territories. Thomas says that the nation will have more to say about the matter once it reviews the proposal and says that it looks forward to meeting with agencies in the future about any projects that may affect Tsleil-Waututh Nation rights and title. Despite concerns from environmentalists and First Nations, B.C. Energy and Climate Solutions Minister Adrian Dix is supportive of the project, pending it meeting environmental assessment and consultation requirements with First Nations. In a report from the Canadian Press released on May 11, Dix says that the province spoke with the Tsleil-Waututh Nation before expressing views about the project to the federal government. The plan, floated by Prime Minister Mark Carney in early May, comes at a time when Canada is looking to diversify energy exports away from the United States. Dix stressed that the dredging would be a federal project, not provincial and that the project "would allow for less traffic at the port and better utilization" because ships could fully load. The dredging project's preliminary stages of environmental assessment and First Nation consultation began on May 20.
Hamilton Spectator
12-05-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
B.C., federal government support dredging Vancouver's Burrard Inlet, others opposed
British Columbia's energy minister is backing plans to dredge and deepen Vancouver's Burrard Inlet to accommodate fully loaded oil tankers, despite concerns from environmentalists, experts and First Nations. The plan, floated recently by Prime Minister Mark Carney, could result in fewer tankers carrying more oil from the Trans Mountain pipeline to markets abroad. The expanded TMX pipeline has been operating since May 2024 and there have been calls to expand it again to help diversify energy exports away from the United States. 'We certainly have said we are supportive, given that it would meet the environmental requirements and consultation requirements (with First Nations) that you have,' Energy Minister Adrian Dix said in a recent interview. Dix added that it would be a federal project that 'would allow for less traffic at the port and better utilization' because ships could fully load. 'To do that (now), to fully load up would risk you hitting the bottom,' he said. 'You don't want to do that.' The comments are a reversal by the NDP government from 2017 when then-premier John Horgan vowed to use 'every tool in the tool box' to try to stop the expansion of the pipeline. The Supreme Court of Canada shut down the B.C. government's opposition three years later, ruling that the province lacked the constitutional authority to interfere with projects crossing provincial borders, but still First Nations, environmentalists and experts say such an expansion raises concerns. Dredging Burrard Inlet would allow fully loaded Aframax-class tankers to pass under Vancouver's Second Narrows Bridge after filling up at the Westridge Marine Terminal at the water's edge in Burnaby, the end of the 1,180 kilometre-long pipeline that begins near Edmonton. Aframax tankers measure up to 25 metres long and have a draft of up to 16 metres deep, but Trans Mountain says on its website that such tankers generally load to about 80 per cent of capacity to provide clearance in Port Metro Vancouver. Juan José Alava, principal investigator with the Ocean Pollution Research Unit at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of B.C., said any proposal to dredge the area requires careful scrutiny because of its impacts on the ecology on one of 'most beautiful areas, water bodies' in B.C. Alava, who lives near the inlet, said it's very shallow with an average depth of 21 metres and a maximum depth of 66 metres. Dredging could have short-term and long-term impacts on the inlet's ecology, he said. Dredging suspends more solids in the water, increasing its turbidity, he said. Higher turbidity in turn hampers the production of phytoplankton, the base of the food pyramid. This would impact larger animals, fish and mammals like seals and killer whales, he added. 'So you can create a real cascade effect in the ecosystem,' Alava said. Dredging can also impact the ability of salmon to spawn and would release pollutants trapped on the ocean floor, he said. Enda Murphy, assistant professor in the department of civil engineering at the University of B.C., said it is not clear how much material would have to be removed at what cost, without all of the information in front of him. It may not be a huge project compared with the millions of cubic meters per year taken from the nearby Fraser River, he said. He agreed with Alava on several points, including the dangers of digging up pollutants that have accumulated over the decades of industrial use. '(That) can pose risks to adjacent shorelines, particularly communities that have been trying to restore parts of Burrard Inlet like Tslei-Waututh (First) Nation.' Any future dredging of Burrard Inlet to accommodate heavier tankers would also have to consider potential impacts on shore lines through their wakes and on other marine traffic, Murphy said. Any future dredging project would require fairly rigorous studies, but the technology and tools are available, he said. That would be outweighed by the need to engage with the First Nations and other communities around the inlet, which would be 'highly political,' Murphy said. No one from the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation was available for an interview, but Chief Jen Thomas said in a written statement that it has 'not received any formal engagement regarding a proposed dredging of Burrard Inlet to facilitate further oil shipments past our community.' Thomas said Burrard Inlet and the Second Narrows are important cultural, spiritual, historical, economical and ecological sites for the nation. 'A proposal to dig up the seabed, which is culturally a part of us, is a very serious concern,' Thomas said, adding that Tsleil-Waututh First Nation will 'certainly have more to say on this matter' once it receives and has time to review such a proposal. She notes that the Tsleil-Waututh hold inherent and constitutionally protected title and rights to the area. 'The Crown must remember that TWN is an order of government with jurisdiction over these matters as well, and Tsleil-Waututh cautions those who speak as though this project has been pre-approved.' Lucero Gonzalez, conservation and policy campaigner with the Wilderness Committee, said Burrard Inlet and the Salish Sea can't sustain megaprojects like the TMX, if B.C. wants to preserve those ecosystems and endangered species like the Southern Resident orcas that depend on them. 'Doubling down on ecological destruction for a project that was never ecologically or economically viable is a complete political failure,' Gonzales said. Dix stressed that the dredging would be a federal, not a provincial project. 'We just made it clear that we'd have no objection other than it obviously meets all the proper standards.' Carney had first raised the possibility of deepening Burrard Inlet on March 21 as one of several potential projects to develop Canada's natural resources and infrastructure. Dix had signalled his government's support on previous occasions, including on April 17 during question period, when Opposition Conservative Gavin Dew asked if he was working with authorities to speed up a second expansion of Trans Mountain pipeline and the dredging of the Burrard Inlet. 'It's my view that given that public investment, that private investment and the importance of energy issues, we should use what we've built (the pipeline) to the fullest possible extent,' Dix said. 'We built it. We paid for it. We should use it.' Dew said in an interview he supports dredging up Burrard Inlet, adding that it 'obviously needs to be done in a responsible and compliant' way. 'But it's just common commercial sense that we shouldn't be underutilizing tankers,' he said. 'Then, the pipeline was common sense when the NDP were dead set against it for years.' The B.C. Greens interim leader Jeremy Valeriote expressed surprise that the issue has surfaced in 'the absence of an actual proposal or further details' from government. Valeriote said in a statement that he expects to see a full environmental assessment, meaningful engagement with the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation and a 'transparent explanation of the rationale and potential impacts' if dredging up Burrard Inlet. 'It's not the kind of decision that should be floated casually or pursued without thorough public scrutiny,' he said. Dix agreed that the project needed a full review from the federal government, adding that the provincial government has already spoken with to Tsleil-Waututh First Nation. 'Obviously, it is not a project yet,' Dix said. 'It's not our project, but we did (speak with the nation) before we expressed our views on this.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
11-05-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
B.C., federal government support dredging Vancouver's Burrard Inlet, others opposed
British Columbia's energy minister is backing plans to dredge and deepen Vancouver's Burrard Inlet to accommodate fully loaded oil tankers, despite concerns from environmentalists, experts and First Nations. The plan, floated recently by Prime Minister Mark Carney, could result in fewer tankers carrying more oil from the Trans Mountain pipeline to markets abroad. The expanded TMX pipeline has been operating since May 2024 and there have been calls to expand it again to help diversify energy exports away from the United States. 'We certainly have said we are supportive, given that it would meet the environmental requirements and consultation requirements (with First Nations) that you have,' Energy Minister Adrian Dix said in a recent interview. Dix added that it would be a federal project that 'would allow for less traffic at the port and better utilization' because ships could fully load. 'To do that (now), to fully load up would risk you hitting the bottom,' he said. 'You don't want to do that.' The comments are a reversal by the NDP government from 2017 when then-premier John Horgan vowed to use 'every tool in the tool box' to try to stop the expansion of the pipeline. The Supreme Court of Canada shut down the B.C. government's opposition three years later, ruling that the province lacked the constitutional authority to interfere with projects crossing provincial borders, but still First Nations, environmentalists and experts say such an expansion raises concerns. Dredging Burrard Inlet would allow fully loaded Aframax-class tankers to pass under Vancouver's Second Narrows Bridge after filling up at the Westridge Marine Terminal at the water's edge in Burnaby, the end of the 1,180 kilometre-long pipeline that begins near Edmonton. Aframax tankers measure up to 25 metres long and have a draft of up to 16 metres deep, but Trans Mountain says on its website that such tankers generally load to about 80 per cent of capacity to provide clearance in Port Metro Vancouver. Juan José Alava, principal investigator with the Ocean Pollution Research Unit at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of B.C., said any proposal to dredge the area requires careful scrutiny because of its impacts on the ecology on one of 'most beautiful areas, water bodies' in B.C. Alava, who lives near the inlet, said it's very shallow with an average depth of 21 metres and a maximum depth of 66 metres. Dredging could have short-term and long-term impacts on the inlet's ecology, he said. Dredging suspends more solids in the water, increasing its turbidity, he said. Higher turbidity in turn hampers the production of phytoplankton, the base of the food pyramid. This would impact larger animals, fish and mammals like seals and killer whales, he added. 'So you can create a real cascade effect in the ecosystem,' Alava said. Dredging can also impact the ability of salmon to spawn and would release pollutants trapped on the ocean floor, he said. Enda Murphy, assistant professor in the department of civil engineering at the University of B.C., said it is not clear how much material would have to be removed at what cost, without all of the information in front of him. It may not be a huge project compared with the millions of cubic meters per year taken from the nearby Fraser River, he said. He agreed with Alava on several points, including the dangers of digging up pollutants that have accumulated over the decades of industrial use. '(That) can pose risks to adjacent shorelines, particularly communities that have been trying to restore parts of Burrard Inlet like Tslei-Waututh (First) Nation.' Any future dredging of Burrard Inlet to accommodate heavier tankers would also have to consider potential impacts on shore lines through their wakes and on other marine traffic, Murphy said. Any future dredging project would require fairly rigorous studies, but the technology and tools are available, he said. That would be outweighed by the need to engage with the First Nations and other communities around the inlet, which would be 'highly political,' Murphy said. No one from the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation was available for an interview, but Chief Jen Thomas said in a written statement that it has 'not received any formal engagement regarding a proposed dredging of Burrard Inlet to facilitate further oil shipments past our community.' Thomas said Burrard Inlet and the Second Narrows are important cultural, spiritual, historical, economical and ecological sites for the nation. 'A proposal to dig up the seabed, which is culturally a part of us, is a very serious concern,' Thomas said, adding that Tsleil-Waututh First Nation will 'certainly have more to say on this matter' once it receives and has time to review such a proposal. She notes that the Tsleil-Waututh hold inherent and constitutionally protected title and rights to the area. 'The Crown must remember that TWN is an order of government with jurisdiction over these matters as well, and Tsleil-Waututh cautions those who speak as though this project has been pre-approved.' Lucero Gonzalez, conservation and policy campaigner with the Wilderness Committee, said Burrard Inlet and the Salish Sea can't sustain megaprojects like the TMX, if B.C. wants to preserve those ecosystems and endangered species like the Southern Resident orcas that depend on them. 'Doubling down on ecological destruction for a project that was never ecologically or economically viable is a complete political failure,' Gonzales said. Dix stressed that the dredging would be a federal, not a provincial project. 'We just made it clear that we'd have no objection other than it obviously meets all the proper standards.' Carney had first raised the possibility of deepening Burrard Inlet on March 21 as one of several potential projects to develop Canada's natural resources and infrastructure. Dix had signalled his government's support on previous occasions, including on April 17 during question period, when Opposition Conservative Gavin Dew asked if he was working with authorities to speed up a second expansion of Trans Mountain pipeline and the dredging of the Burrard Inlet. 'It's my view that given that public investment, that private investment and the importance of energy issues, we should use what we've built (the pipeline) to the fullest possible extent,' Dix said. 'We built it. We paid for it. We should use it.' Dew said in an interview he supports dredging up Burrard Inlet, adding that it 'obviously needs to be done in a responsible and compliant' way. 'But it's just common commercial sense that we shouldn't be underutilizing tankers,' he said. 'Then, the pipeline was common sense when the NDP were dead set against it for years.' The B.C. Greens interim leader Jeremy Valeriote expressed surprise that the issue has surfaced in 'the absence of an actual proposal or further details' from government. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Valeriote said in a statement that he expects to see a full environmental assessment, meaningful engagement with the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation and a 'transparent explanation of the rationale and potential impacts' if dredging up Burrard Inlet. 'It's not the kind of decision that should be floated casually or pursued without thorough public scrutiny,' he said. Dix agreed that the project needed a full review from the federal government, adding that the provincial government has already spoken with to Tsleil-Waututh First Nation. 'Obviously, it is not a project yet,' Dix said. 'It's not our project, but we did (speak with the nation) before we expressed our views on this.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2025.
