Ardagh Glass gears for Africa expansion

28 March 2023

Ardagh Glass gears for growth and expansion into Africa with syndicated senior debt facilities from RMB

Ardagh Glass Packaging South Africa (Ardagh Glass) has recently completed the refinancing, upsizing, and syndication of its senior debt facilities, to the tune of R9.2 billion, with RMB acting as the coordinator and Mandated Lead Arranger on the deal. The senior debt facilities were upsized from R6.2 billion to R9.2 billion, due in March 2028 with the option to extend the facilities by an additional two years. 

“We structured this package to cater to uncertain markets and fluctuating demand, which have become hallmarks of the uncertain current economic climate. As such, the package includes an Accordion Option that allows Ardagh Glass the option to upsize further without incurring commitment fees. The transaction was oversubscribed by more than two times, with pricing coming in substantially tighter than Ardagh Glass’ current debt facilities and initial market guidance, which will translate to substantial savings in a rising interest rate environment and is a strong testament to the quality of its management and operations,” explains Anthony Sam at RMB. 

Ardagh Glass is a market leader in glass production in South Africa, with four well-invested facilities, and has a presence in Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia, serving a broad range of leading international, regional and domestic customers, mainly in the beer, wine, spirits, food and non-alcoholic beverage sectors. 

It is part of the Ardagh Group, which has operations in the Americas, Europe and Africa and operates 65 production facilities in 16 countries with annual sales approaching USD10 billion. The Group acquired Consol Glass in April 2022 in a move to boost its South African footprint and is now gearing for growth and looking to expand in Africa. 

“Ardagh Glass is investing in its local facility in Nigel, with a third new furnace that will come online toward the end of 2023, which the upsized debt facility will cater for. This will create around 150 new direct jobs and create additional indirect jobs with its expansion. In addition, the debt package will provide additional liquidity to fund its operations in Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia. This investment from a global leading manufacturer demonstrates international confidence in South Africa and Africa as a whole, and will help to enable sustainable job creation and economic growth,” Jon Chowthee, from RMB added. 

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