US – Ardagh Group has announced plans to expand its North Carolina can manufacturing facility to meet fast-growing demand for aluminum cans.

The proposed project includes the conversion of a warehousing space to a production space and the installation of two new high-speed can manufacturing lines at the existing Winston-Salem facility.

Ardagh also plans to carry out additional building improvements to make the building better suited for the additional workload that is expected once the expansion project is complete.

According to a statement from the company, a total of US$195 million is being invested into the expansion project.

About 94 jobs – including operations, production and administrative personnel – will be created once the expansion project is complete in 2022.

The new employees will join the existing 230 local employees that work at the facility which is the company’s largest can manufacturing facility in the US.

“This project forms part of Ardagh’s Group’s global $2.1 billion 2021-2024 business growth investment programme,” said Claude Marbach, CEO of Ardagh metal beverage North America.

Marbach further noted that the project was being undertaken to meet fast-growing demand for cans as consumers increasingly recognise their environmental and quality advantages of beverage cans.

A report by Morder Intelligence notes that as a result of increased demand, the aluminum cans market is expected to registering a CAGR of 3.2% over the forecast period of 2021-2026.

Ardagh Group  has produced aluminium beverage cans and can ends in Winston-Salem since 1975 and hopes that with the new expansion, it will be better positioned to take advantage of the anticipated rise in demand for cans.

Canpack to construct second US plant

Meanwhile, Ardagh Group’s competitor, Canpack is also preparing itself to take advantage of the increased demand for aluminium cans.

Canpack says it will invest US$380 million to build its second US aluminium beverage can body manufacturing plant in Muncie, Indiana.

Construction of the new 862,000-square-foot facility will start in mid-2021, and the plant is expected to commence operations in the fourth quarter of next year.

“We are proud to bring to Muncie, Indiana, a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility producing aluminum cans, an infinitely recyclable and sustainable product,” said Roberto Villaquiran, CEO of Canpack.

“We look forward to becoming an integral part of the Muncie community and contributing to the remarkable business environment that exists in Indiana.”

Canpack broke ground on its first US operation a year ago in Olyphant, Pennsylvania, and says that it will invest a further US$10 million to increase its end-making capacity at the site.

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