Graham sells French operations
continued with the sale of a French blow-moulding factory to a
Dutch investment group.
The French blow-moulding operations of Graham Packaging Europe have been bought by ARCC Holdings, a Dutch-based group which is part of the Business Creation Holdings investment group.
The sale is part of Graham Packaging's ongoing programme of restructuring its European operations, which includes not only disposals but also the construction of several new plants.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Ashok Sudan, senior vice president with responsibility for Graham Packaging Europe, and Bas Welles, managing director of Business Creation Holdings, said ARCC Holdings would continue blow-moulding activity at the plant, establish a new plastics recycling project there, and continue to employ 80 of the existing workers.
"We are very pleased with the outcome of the arrangement with Business Creation Holdings, especially the fact that we're able to save the majority of jobs at Blyes," Sudan said. Graham Packaging will provide technical assistance to ARCC Holdings for 18 months.
The European restructuring is designed to allow Graham Packaging, which makes blow-moulded plastic containers for the food industry, to focus its business on the needs of its core customers. The company works very closely with many of these companies, often having on-site manufacturing facilities, such as the one recently opened at a Spanish production site operated by French diary giant Danone.
The programme has so far involved the closure of a UK plant and the sale of two facilities in Italy, as well as the opening of a new site in Poland and the expansion of an existing factory in Belgium. The company now operates a total of 55 plants worldwide.
