ALPLA on expansion trail

HOT on the heels of is acquisition of Durban based Verigreen Packaging, ALPLA Group, a global manufacturer of plastic packaging and a recycling specialist, has taken over Plastisax S.L.

The Spanish company produces plastic bottles for the cosmetics, home and personal care segments. The takeover will enable an increased use of recycled material in production operations and a strengthening of the circular economy in the region.

With the purchase of the Plastisax S.L, ALPLA is consolidating its market position in eastern Spain and expanding its production capacities mainly for packaging solutions made from the plastic HDPE (high-density polyethylene). A smaller product area also includes bottles made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate). EBM (extrusion blow moulding) and SBM (stretch blow moulding) are used as production technologies.

Verigreen Packaging specialises in bottles and canisters for lubricants such as engine oils and has a workforce of 25 employees at its site in Durban. "This acquisition is the perfect fit for our strategy," explains Mike Resnicek, Managing Director of Sub-Saharan Africa at ALPLA. "It offers us an inroad into a market segment in which we have not been present in southern Africa until now as well as generating synergies for our existing customers and giving us opportunities to further diversify our portfolio."

With the acquisition, ALPLA is increasing its involvement in this region. In 2017, it acquired Boxmore Packaging, the African market leader in the manufacture of PET bottles, PET preforms and caps. A modern production facility together with a regional head office is currently under construction in Lanseria near Johannesburg. There is another production facility near to Cape Town. Outside of Africa, the ALPLA Group already has a wealth of experience in the production of packaging for lubricants.