Nampak to spend US$7.2 million towards ramping up aluminium cans production

Africa’s biggest producer of beverage packaging Nampak is reportedly ramping up the production of aluminium cans as a response to customers’ global retreat from plastic.

“Consumer sentiment against plastic packaging that cannot be recycled is very clear,” Chief Executive Officer Andre de Ruyter said. “Aluminum is a valuable metal and so people have the incentive to recycle it.”

Andre de Ruyter also mentioned that the company had been putting greater emphasis on cardboard cartons and developing a type of renewable plastic lid made from sugarcane. That’s due to a growing concern about the impact of plastic on the environment, particularly on items such as single-use straws.

Nampak and other container markers are able to boost aluminium can production alongside expanding into fast-growing regions such as Africa, where demand for canned and bottled drinks is rising owing to people’s inclination towards packaged goods for the first time.

According to the report, Nampak would spend US$ 7.2 million on a new food-can line in Nigeria while that country’s GZ Industries would open a factory in South Africa.

Nampak also announced a 7 per cent rise in its full-year operating profit. As soon as this news came out, the company’s shares declined 5.1 per cent to 14.75. The firm resisted a resumption of dividends due to a long-standing issue transferring cash from Angola and Zimbabwe and an ongoing effort to sell its glass business.