Ardagh to spin out $8.7bn cans

BILLIONAIRE Paul Coulson is shifting more of his focus to aluminium cans with the creation of a New York listed Ardagh Metal Packaging (AMP).

AMP, which will be listed in the United States and valued at around $8.5bn (€7bn), according to Ardagh. It is being created from a combination of some Ardagh assets with investment from partner Gores Group.

Aluminium cans are in high demand and are easier and cheaper to recycle than glass packaging helping make the new listed entity “a pretty attractive business” to investors with environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets, Mr Coulson told the Irish Independent.

Ardagh Group’s customers include Diageo, Heineken, Pernod Ricard, Nestle and Coca-Cola. It employs more than 16,000 people.

Mr Coulson said the beverage can business has been “very strong” in part due to a shortage of cans in the United States and elsewhere.

“We are completely sold out, that is not just a Covid thing, that was happening anyway,” said Mr Coulson.

“On the glass side, in Europe in on-trade, for bars, restaurants, hotels, for some of our glass that in Q2 led to weakness, but that has recovered materially since then, so we had quite a good performance.”

The strength of the beverage cans business and the growth Ardagh is seeing is predominantly coming from new products.

“[With] the growth of things like seltzers in the US, health drinks, the can has become very much part of the branding and the marketing, you

Ardagh will receive up to $3.4bn from the deal