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Arab flexibles group plans to buy European Amcor/Alcan unitsJosh Brooks, 5 October 2009Be the first to comment on this article A Dubai-based flexible packaging group has said it is looking for acquisitions in Europe and is planning to acquire parts of the Amcor/Alcan business in Europe, according to reports. John Hetherton, general manager of Arabian Flexible Packaging (AFP), told local reporters that his company expected the European Commission to force Amcor to sell off some parts of its business when it considers its US$2bn acquisition of much of Rio Tinto Alcan’s packaging business. He told business website Emirates Business 24/7: “The commission is resolving anti-competitive and rationalisation issues. We believe that some of the businesses will come up for sale when the marriage [Amcor acquires Alcan] finally happens. There will be opportunities.” AFP produces flexible packaging and is part of Arabian Packaging, which also has a corrugated division. Its owner, the Al Ghurair group of companies, also counts canmaker Arabian Can Industry and BOPP film producer Taghleef Industries among its portfolio. The company is understood to export around a fifth of its output to European clients and is hoping that establishing a base in Europe would bring it closer to many major clients. Hetherton said: “European, Australian and South East Asian companies, looking for cheaper packaging materials, have been forced to come to the Middle East. For companies such as ours, raw materials come from resin – a by-product of petroleum processing. Since the region is oil rich, it is cheaper for us to source raw materials.” However, it is so far unclear which, if any, of Amcor’s sites would be put up for sale once the Australian group’s deal to buy four of Alcan’s packaging businesses – Food Europe, Food Asia, Global Pharmaceuticals and Global Tobacco – completes. It is widely expected that following the deal, which was announced in August just over two years after mining giant Rio Tinto first acquired Alcan, there will be a period of consolidation of Alcan and Amcor’s plants in Europe. The deal is subject to approval by the European Commission and commentators have suggested that competition authorities in Brussels could place its own conditions on the acquisition going through. In its annual report published last month, Amcor said that the Alcan acquisition would double the size of its flexibles business to cover 111 plants in 30 countries, with sales of around £3.5bn British plastics companies were themselves encouraged last year to explore doing business in the Middle East, not least following the launch of the £2bn Abu Dhabi Polymers Park. Click here for today’s headlines from across the packaging industry Speak Your Mind |
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