Red Bull, Ball Corporation, and Rauch Fruchtsäfte have begun construction on a 2.3-million-square-foot production, manufacturing, and distribution complex in Concord, N.C. First announced in 2021, the project is expected to transform both the local economy and the wider beverage industry. Concord, N.C., lies in the Piedmont region of North Carolina, positioned in the central part of the state, northeast of Charlotte.
From 700 jobs to 3B cans annually
The new facility is projected to generate approximately 700 jobs, providing a significant boost to the regional workforce. It will bring together Ball’s state-of-the-art aluminium can manufacturing, Rauch’s advanced filling facilities, and Red Bull North America’s operations in one integrated site. Operations are scheduled to begin in 2028, with full filling capacity anticipated by 2031.
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At that point, the facility will be able to produce up to three billion cans annually. The site has been designed for maximum efficiency while minimising CO₂ impact, combining Ball’s can production, Rauch’s filling lines, and Red Bull North America’s fully automated warehousing and distribution centre.
Seamless supply chain from cans to customer
While all three companies rely on aluminium packaging, Red Bull North America itself does not produce aluminium cans. Instead, it depends on its partners, Ball Corporation and Rauch Fruchtsäfte, which specialise in aluminium packaging and beverage filling.
The facility will also feature 170,000 pallet spaces and internal conveyor bridges for seamless intralogistics. These systems will connect can production with co-packing, warehousing, and direct customer delivery, reducing transport needs and lowering carbon emissions across the supply chain.
In late 2022, Red Bull, Rauch, and Ball secured updated incentives that increased the project’s investment value from $1.1 billion to $1.5 billion. Documents from that time show Rauch committed $680 million to build a can-filling operation at The Grounds, Red Bull planned a $424 million investment in a regional distribution centre, and Ball proposed $383 million for a can manufacturing facility.
Timeline shifts, but Concord project stays on course
The development timeline has shifted several times. When first announced in 2021, operations were expected to begin by the end of 2022. Following the revised incentives, groundbreaking was projected for 2023. However, in November 2023, Packaging Dive reported that a Ball executive had confirmed the company would delay its Concord facility until 2028. Despite these changes, the project remains one of the largest beverage industry investments in the region.
Concord, N.C. will now host the second integrated manufacturing campus of Red Bull, Rauch, and Ball Corporation in the United States, serving customers across surrounding regions and states. Reflecting the project’s scale and significance, the groundbreaking ceremony was attended by several state and local leaders, including North Carolina Secretary of Commerce Lee Lilley, Concord Mayor Bill Dusch, State Senator Chris Measmer, State Representative Brian Echevarria, Chairman Jeff Jones, Advantage Austria Trade Commissioner Peter Hasslacher, Cabarrus County Commissioners Laura Lindsey and Kenneth Wortman, along with members of the Concord City Council.
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