Atlas Development & Support Services Limited has announced it has completed its acquisition of East Africa Packaging Holdings Limited
The Chancho Project, which will be rolled out by East Africa Packaging Holdings, will involve designing a glass bottle manufacturing facility 45km north of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
“The Chancho Project is currently in the feasibility stage and will provide Atlas access to the rapidly growing Ethiopian consumer market. This acquisition marks the first step in a defined development strategy, which will result in high-quality, locally produced glass bottles being available to the growing Ethiopian beer and beverage industries,” said Carl Esprey, CEO of Atlas.
According to Esprey, Ethiopia's economy is growing rapidly, attracting increased investment from international beverage companies, with more than US$500mn invested to date.
"Beer production has been growing at a compound annual growth rate of 14.3 per cent over the past 14 years. Despite these growth rates, the demand for glass bottles is largely unmet by local production and is, at present, mainly satisfied by expensive imports," stated Esprey.
