The company that claims to be the world´s fourth largest packaging producer, South Africa´s Nampak (Sandton/RSA; www.nampak.co.za), has also joined the ranks of the top 20 European plastics packaging producers following its acquisition of British blow moulder Plysu in 1999 and the latter´s merger with Blow Mocan to form Nampak Europe (GB-Woburn Sands, Milton Keynes; www.eu.nampak.com). This market position will be enhanced still further by the merger currently under way with Malbak (Sandton/RSA; www.malbak.co.za) formerly its biggest domestic competitor.

While Malbak deals primarily in cardboard, it also owns M.Y. Plastics (“Sharp Interpack”, GB-Aylesham; www.myplastics.co.uk), the British market leader in thermoformed plastic food trays. The company has sales of some EUR 55m. With the recent closure of a facility in Edinburgh, production is now focused on the two sites in Aylesham and Bridgewater. In South Africa the companies of the subsidiary Kohler group attain sales of more than EUR 110m with rigid and flexible plastics packaging.

The Nampak group as a whole recorded sales in excess of ZAR 10 bn (about EUR 1.1bn) in 2001. This will increase to a pro forma ZAR 15 bn through the merger with Malbak. The plastics division accounts for ZAR 3.85 bn in sales overall, of which almost ZAR 2 bn are achieved in Europe. Nampak is also plannning further expansion in Africa. It recently acquired the closures business of the US Crown Cork & Seal in English-speaking East Africa for USD 25m.