Glass and metal packaging producer Ardagh Group has announced its acquisition of US-based Leone Industries from the Leone family for an undisclosed sum.
The move is set to increase the size of Ardagh’s glass division by approximately 10%.
Founded in 1966, Leone Industries is a technologically advanced manufacturer of glass containers serving the US food and beverage markets, producing more than 500 million containers per annum from its state of the art facility in Bridgeton, New Jersey.
Ardagh Group CEO Niall Wall commented: “We are very pleased to have completed the acquisition of Leone Industries, which will assist us to expand our US activities into the glass container market.
“It is an important step in developing our international glass franchise and will add scale and value to our business.”
In January 2011, Ardagh Group signalled a diversification away from its core glass business with the formalisation of the €1.7bn purchase of Netherlands-based global metal packaging group Impress Coöperatieve – described at the time as “a transformational deal” by Ardagh chairman Paul Coulson.
Subsequently in March 2011 the company announced its acquisition of Italian metal packaging company Fi.Par (Finanziaria di Partecipazioni Industriali), expanding its reach into the food and aerosol markets in Italy and Greece.
And in early March this year, in deals totalling about €85m, Ardagh completed further acquisitions in aluminium container production, consisting of Boxal Group assets in France and the Netherlands, and Szenna Pack in Hungary.
