— By Plasteurope.com staff — 

Swiss packaging manufacturer Hoffmann Neopac (Thun; www.hoffmann-neopac.com) has received a takeover bid for its Metal division and is currently reviewing a sale. The potential buyer is said to be an internationally active family business with a strong market presence in the metal packaging sector, the company said. No financial details were provided.

In the event of a sale, the new owner will reportedly take over the production site in Dronten, Netherlands, including its workforce, and continue existing customer contracts. The production of metal packaging at the Swiss site in Thun, meanwhile, would be discontinued, according to the plans. This would affect 75 employees.

The potential sale is currently the subject of a three-week consultation process, and Hoffmann Neopac intends to announce further information in mid-February. In the meantime, the employee representatives can propose alternatives to the sale or closure of the Thun production site.

The company had already announced last year that it would be relocating several can-production lines from the Thun plant to Dronten. The company cited the loss of important customers in Switzerland and the negative impact of the unfavourable euro exchange rate as reasons.

Hoffmann Neopac employs a total of around 1,200 people and currently operates six production sites worldwide. Plastic tubes are manufactured in Switzerland, Hungary, the US, and India, with a total production capacity of around 1.3 bn units.

— Translated by Christopher Köbel