FTSE-100 packaging company DS Smith has revealed plans to buy Spanish rival Europac at a cost of almost £1.7 million.
Europac is currently a 42% owned family business. The deal will include the refinancing of the company’s existing debt and is subject to shareholders agreement. It also needs to meet merger control approval from the European Commission.
Set up in 1995, Europac operates from 23 locations, has 17 factories and 8,500 hectares of forestry operations in Spain, France and Portugal. Its most recently posted annual turnover is €1.1 billion.
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It is the only manufacturer of kraftliner and coated papers in southern Europe and is the leading packaging supplier in Portugal, and the fourth-largest in France and the Iberian Peninsula.
It is said to be the second-largest recovered paper manager on the Iberian Peninsula.
Commenting on the proposed acquisition, Miles Roberts, group chief executive for DS Smith, said that the company had worked in the Iberian peninsula for a number of years during which time it had gained good insight into the Europac business.
“Demand for our product is rising. By bringing these two companies together we can create something special.
“We believe we can make cost synergies of 50 million euros per annum based on procurement, lower distribution costs and a harmonising of the supply chain of Europac into DS Smith,” he added.
DS Smith buys USA box maker
Only last week DS Smith PLC announced that it had completed the acquisition of Corrugated Container Corporation (CCC) which is based in Tennessee, North Carolina, USA.
CCC, also a family-owned business, operates from four sites and will boost DS Smith’s North American box making capacity.
