Manufacturing

Sacks made of plastic tape fabric for packaging dry bulk goods such as cement provide a lightweight, resistant and sustainable alternative to paper and film sacks. (Image source: Starlinger)

Starlinger & Co Gesellschaft m.b.H., an Austrian machine manufacturing company, has acquired the woven packaging division from German machinery producer, Windmöller & Hölscher (W&H)

The company has also taken over W&H’s Viennese subsidiary company, W&H Machinery GmbH, a specialist in woven packaging. This development is aimed at strengthening its position as a world-leading supplier of machinery for woven plastic packaging and the integration of the related technologies holds significant potential for synergy effects in engineering, services and sales.

“The acquisition of W&H’s woven packaging division means that we can extend our portfolio and offer even more individual solutions to producers of sustainable woven plastic packaging,” remarked Angelika Huemer, CEO and managing partner of Starlinger. “We expect synergy effects and advantages for our customers not only with regard to technology, but also through our well-developed worldwide sales and service network.”

The products of W&H’s woven packaging portfolio will be marketed by Starlinger in the future. With regard to service and spare parts, Starlinger takes over the worldwide support of the customers.

“The decision to part with our woven sack division allows us to focus our resources on growth in the paper and film packaging market,” added Falco Paepenmüller, CEO of W&H Group. “Woven packaging products, on the other hand, fit perfectly into the existing portfolio and infrastructure of Starlinger. When we chose the buyer, it was especially important for us that our customers in the woven packaging market continue to receive excellent and reliable service and support.”

BUA’s portfolio spans sugar and cement production, flour milling, oil processing, real estate development, oil and gas, shipping and ports. (Image source: AFC)

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), a multilateral financial institution, has facilitated a US$200mn corporate finance facility for BUA Group to support its medium-term objectives by unlocking capital to pursue emerging market opportunities

BUA Group is a Nigerian conglomerate spanning food, infrastructure, mining and manufacturing sectors and will utilise the financial support to pursue its expansion plans, thereby boosting its industrial base and Nigeria’s export manufacturing capacity.

“The success of this transaction reflects the strength of AFC’s financial advisory expertise in providing top-tier strategic, corporate finance and technical guidance to leading institutions across Africa,” remarked executive director and head of financial services at AFC, Banji Fehintola. “We are proud to have played a central role for BUA in their continued expansion, driving local manufacturing, job creation and economic prosperity in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.”

Boosting Nigerian self-sufficiency

The financing was approved by Afreximbank in two tranches, the first US$150mn of which has been dispersed. It marks the second successful financial advisory mandate that AFC has closed for the BUA Group.

“With Afreximbank’s support, BUA can increase investments to strengthen industrial capacity and meet regional demand,” remarked Abdul Samad Rabiu, CFR, CON, chairman of BUA. “Our goal is sustainable growth that boosts Nigeria’s self-sufficiency and Africa’s global trade presence, creating jobs and building economic resilience.”

Kanayo Awani, executive vice president, Intra Africa Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, added, “We are delighted at this partnership, which promises to deliver significant impact through job creation, import substitution, and export diversification – thereby boosting Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).”

The ALPLArecycling division will produce up to 35,000 tonnes of rPET per year. (Image source: ALPLA)

ALPLA, an international plastics manufacturer and recycler, has cut the red tape on its new state-of-the-art recycling plant in South Africa, marking its entry into the country’s PET recycling market

The new plant is located in KwaZulu-Natal and has been completed following an investment of around US$60mn and approximately 18 months of construction.

Once all processes have been qualified and the flakes and pellets have been approved by the customer, the facility will begin production in 2025 and will help ALPLA to produce up to 35,000 tonnes of recycled PET (rPET) flakes and food-sake rPET pellets annually in the country. Located on a 90,000 sq m site, the plant will increase the supply of rPET in the national market.

According to Dietmar Marin, managing director of ALPLA recycling, country’s beverage industry will benefit from this by receiving high-quality material and be able to meet the legal requirements. Currently, South Africa’s EPR regulation requires PET drinks bottles to contain 10% recycled material since 2022, and this will double to 20% by 2026.

The recycling plant is designed to increase the proportion of pellets and can accommodate a second extrusion line to promote the circular economy in South Africa. An additional 30,000 sq m of space is available at the site for further expansion. ALPLA will process the high-quality recycled material into PET preforms for the production of drinks bottles at the Lanseria plant, which opened in 2022.

Safe, affordable and sustainable packaging

The opening of the new facility was market by a ceremony with around 180 guests in attendance. This guest list included representatives from the South African Ministries of Trade, Industry and Competition and Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, as well as those from the province of KwaZulu-Natal, the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, the iLembe District Municipality, and Austria’s Ambassador Romana Königsbrun.

Together, the guests celebrated the opening of the state-of-the-art plant that will process rPET produced at the plant in Lanseria back into safe, affordable and sustainable packaging.

“South Africa is a strategically important market for us and one in which we want to continue to grow,” commented ALPLA CEO Philipp Lehner. “Together with our customers and partners, our aim is to provide safe, affordable and sustainable packaging solutions to our customers and to continue improving standards of living. With our investments in Ballito and before that in Lanseria, we have laid the foundation for a successful future.”

Sihle Ngcamu, CEO of Trade & Investment KwaZulu-Natal, added, “ALPLA’s involvement does not only accelerate the industrialisation of iLembe District Municipality, but ensures investing in projects that support UN Sustainable Development Goals, attracting other companies along the value chain and creating several thousand jobs in the collection infrastructure.”

Worker in a cotton ginning factory in Benin. (Image source: M. Diarassouba für AbTF)

According to the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF), Benin is establishing itself as a new procurement and production hub for textiles and clothing

AbTF is supporting this development through Cotton made in Africa (CmiA), one of its sustainability standards, that aims to provide a sustainable and local basis for textile production while also facilitating access to international markets. The potential of the country’s textile market was confirmed by visit from a AbTF delegation.

“African textile production is gaining momentum, and Cotton made in Africa makes a major contribution to ensuring that sustainability plays a key role,” said Gerlind Baz, a senior project manager at AbTF. “We are very pleased to support the development of a West African textile production sector here in Benin and to thereby further promote market access for sustainably produced cotton from Africa.”

The West African country has recently celebrated the construction of a textile production centre near Cotonou. With 100% of the cotton verified by CmiA, it has depicted as a major step forward in the development of an independent and sustainable textile industry in Benin.

Sustainable cotton

In Benin, cotton has been grown in accordance with the CmiA standard since the initiative was founded in 2005. Together with three cotton companies in Benin, AbTF is working through its CmiA and CmiA Organic standards to improve market access for cotton producers and to make people more resilient to the effects of climate change while protecting the environment and biodiversity.

After visiting the new textile park, the delegation, alongside partners from GIZ and PAN UK, met farmers who grow cotton in accordance with the CmiA Organic standards and who are a part of the Growing Benin’s Organic Cotton Sector project. This aims to improve living conditions for farmers and supports them in the transition to the cultivation of organic cotton in compliance with standards. By expanding market access through CmiA, the project plans to secure long-term investments in the organic cotton sector in Benin.