Newsworthy

Mergers & Acquisitions

Amcor to acquire Berry Global in $8.4B deal

Two global packaging producers are set to merge as Amcor has agreed to acquire Berry Global in an $8.43 billion all-stock transaction.

The companies say the combination brings together two complementary businesses to create a “global leader in consumer packaging solutions,” with a broader flexible film and converted film offering for customers, a scaled containers and closures business and a unique global health care portfolio. As a combined company, they say they will have unprecedented innovation capabilities and scale and be uniquely positioned to accelerate growth, solve customers’ and consumers’ sustainability needs, unlock portfolio transformation and deliver significant value to both sets of shareholders.

Berry shareholders will receive a fixed exchange ratio of 7.25 Amcor shares for each Berry share held upon closing, resulting in Amcor and Berry shareholders owning roughly 63 percent and 37 percent, respectively, of the combined company.

The transaction has received the unanimous approval of both companies’ boards of directors and values Berry’s common stock at $73.59 per share.

Closing is targeted for mid-2025 and subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals and other conditions. The combined entity will be named Amcor Plc, with global headquarters to remain in Zurich, though it plans to maintain a presence in Evansville, Indiana, where Berry is based.

Amcor will maintain its primary listing on the New York Stock Exchange and its secondary listing on the Australian Securities Exchange. Upon completion of the transaction, Amcor’s board of directors will expand to 11 directors, four of whom will be nominated by Berry.

Current Amcor CEO Peter Konieczny will serve in the same capacity in the combined company; Graeme Liebelt, an independent nonexecutive chairman and director at Amcor, will serve as the combined company’s board chairman; and Stephen Sterrett, Berry’s current board chair, will serve as Amcor’s new deputy chair.

“This combination delivers on our strategy to accelerate growth by putting the customer first, elevating the role of sustainability and orienting the portfolio toward faster-growing, higher-margin categories,” Konieczny says. “We will have a more complete and more sustainable product offering, supported by stronger innovation capabilities, global scale and supply chain flexibility. We will help global and local customers grow faster and operate more efficiently with a team of exceptional talent.

“As a result, this combination also drives a step change in annual free cash flow, earnings growth and value creation for our shareholders.”

The companies point to numerous benefits of the merger:

• the ability to offer customers a wider range of more sustainable solutions that drive circularity, increase use of alternative materials and a lower carbon footprint;
• greater choice for customers and consumers with a portfolio of unique flexible, container and closure products developed using a broader range of recycled materials, next-generation lightweighting technologies, reuse- and recycle-ready capabilities and differentiated high barrier paper-based formats;
• the establishment of a technology-driven innovation leader with more capabilities and significantly higher capacity to invest in solving technical challenges with combined research and development (R&D) investments of $180 million per year, about 1,500 R&D professionals, 10 innovation centers worldwide and more than 7,000 patents, registered designs and trademarks; and
• enhanced capabilities by leveraging corporate venturing partnerships to access new sustainability solutions such as substrates, barriers, fiber and recycling, digital solutions and new ideas in adjacent businesses and technologies.

Additionally, the companies say their combination will lead to an optimized footprint, servicing customers in more than 140 countries through about 400 production facilities.

The new Amcor is expected to generate $24 billion per year, with adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $4.3 billion, including run-rate synergies. Combined, the companies have cash flow of more than $3 billion, which provides capacity to fund organic investment, a compelling dividend, value accretive M&A and share repurchases.

“Over the past year, Berry has undergone a significant transformation, completing the spin-off of our HHNF [Health, Hygiene and Specialties Global Nonwovens and Films] business, enhancing our product mix and optimizing our portfolio,” Berry CEO Kevin Kwilinski says. “Our combination with Amcor is a logical next step in our ... evolution, and it is a testament to our ... team that we’re well-positioned to build on this momentum and deliver even more value to our shareholders.

“Importantly, Berry and Amcor have aligned philosophies focused on safety, employee experience, sustainability, innovation, customer intimacy and functional excellence,” Kwilinski adds.

Metals, Legislation & Regulations

ReMA chapter collaborates with Minnesota lawmakers

The Upper Midwest Chapter of the Washington-based Recycled Materials Association (ReMA) has filed a lawsuit against the Minnesota Department of Commerce over a law that will go into effect Jan. 1 involving the sale of copper for recycling.

The Minnesota legislature passed a law requiring sellers of copper scrap to obtain licenses as part of an omnibus bill in April. Neil Byce, a Twin Cities-based recycler, tells Recycling Today the copper-related legislation was a “grain of sand on the huge beach” that was the omnibus bill and was in response to copper thieves’ targeting of light poles, which creates a safety concern.

With its lawsuit, the ReMA Upper Midwest Chapter was seeking an injunction to prevent the law from going into effect as planned in January as it works with the state legislature to clarify the legislation, which fails to define basic terms, including the types of copper scrap covered by the legislation, Byce says. However, the judge ruled against ReMA on Dec. 18, 2024.

The law attempts to address copper theft by “creating a restrictive mechanism that would create a barrier to entry” by requiring sellers of copper to obtain a license for $250. However, other than specifying plumbers and electrical contractors already licensed by the state have an implicit license to sell copper, ReMA says the law fails to define sellers who are subject to the law and required to obtain a license, including homeowners doing renovation jobs and industrial accounts.

Recyclers are working with lawmakers to address the ambiguity of the current law, Byce says. The injunction sought by the ReMA Upper Midwest chapter would have delayed the enactment of the current law until the definitions can be established, as the next legislative session doesn’t start until after the current law takes effect.

Recycling Today was unable to connect with the ReMA Upper Midwest Chapter prior to publication deadline regarding the status of modifications to the law.

Paper

Report: Saica explores recycled paper mill project in Dayton, Ohio

According to a report from the Dayton Daily News, Spain-based recycled paper and packaging producer Saica Group is exploring building a recycled paper mill in Dayton, Ohio, that would require amending the city’s current zoning code.

Saica currently operates a corrugated packaging plant in Hamilton, Ohio—its first in the U.S.—and the Dayton Daily News reports the company is considering building and operating a recycled paper mill in northwest Dayton, a project Saica estimates will cost $600 million.

However, according to Dayton’s current zoning code, paper or pulp manufacturing operations are not permitted. At least one city official has voiced opposition to the project, citing potential odor and pollution that “hurt the quality of life of neighbors who live near the potential site.”

The Daily News report says Saica is asking the city to approve a zoning code amendment that would separate paper recycling from its prohibition on all paper and pulp manufacturing. The company tells the Daily News that it makes sense for Dayton to prohibit building pulp mills that process raw timber but that recycled paper product manufacturing uses different processes that “have a much smaller environmental impact.”

A Saica spokesperson tells the Daily News it is considering siting the project in Dayton because of the city’s proximity to other U.S. properties and its favorable location from a logistics standpoint.

During a Dec. 10, 2024, meeting of the Dayton City Plan Board, the city’s planning commission, officials heard from Saica representatives and residents. The board has not concluded whether it will amend the zoning code and plans to resume discussions in January.

Saica Group is one of the largest European recycled paper producers, with more than 10,000 employees across sites in Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Turkey, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland and the U.S. It operates four business units: Saica Paper, its recycled paper manufacturing operations; Saica Natur, its waste management and environmental services business; Saica Pack, its corrugated board packaging production operations; and Saica Flex, its flexible packaging business.

In February of last year, the Anderson Plan Commission approved Saica Group to build a $130 million box plant in Anderson, Indiana, which would mark its second box plant in the U.S. along with its Hamilton site. The Hamilton plant is 360,000 square feet, including manufacturing, converting and production areas.

Saica says it has 3.3 million tons of recovered paper capacity for corrugated board production annually.

Plastics

Second Cyclyx site to be located near Fort Worth, Texas

Cyclyx International, a joint venture among Agilyx, ExxonMobil and LyondellBasell, has reached a final investment decision for a second Cyclyx Circularity Center (CCC2).

The new facility will be located at an existing distribution center around Fort Worth, Texas, as the partnership aims to create further necessary infrastructure for a circular economy for plastics.

Together, Tigard, Oregon-based Agilyx and Houston-based Exxon-Mobil and LyondellBasell are investing $135 million into Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based Cyclyx to fund the construction and operation of CCC2 and expect the site to start up in the second half of 2026. Once operational, Cyclyx projects the facility will have the capacity to produce approximately 300 million pounds of plastic feedstock per year to supply to customers using mechanical and advanced recycling technologies.

Similar to CCC1, which is progressing toward startup this year in Houston, CCC2 operations are expected to create more than 100 jobs in the local economy, according to Cyclyx.

“This new world-class facility will significantly expand our capability to supply the growing industry demand for feedstock for both mechanical and advanced recycling,” said Joe Vaillancourt, CEO of Cyclyx at the time of the announcement. (Vaillancourt retired at the end of 2024.) “CCC2 will help enable the aggregation and recycling of postconsumer, commercial and industrial plastic waste often destined for landfills or incineration. We look forward to working with the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex community as well as our feedstock customers to deliver sustainable solutions.”

Cyclyx Circularity Centers are designed to accept a wide range of plastic streams, including those typically not accepted in current recycling programs. Combined, Cyclyx says CCC1 and CCC2 will have the capacity to produce an estimated 600 million pounds of feedstock annually.

As part of its strategy, Cyclyx says it is continuing to explore the development of additional Circularity Centers, with the goal of placing each facility in major hubs across the U.S.

Plastics

ExxonMobil to boost chemical recycling capacity

Global petrochemical company ExxonMobil plans to invest more than $200 million to expand chemical recycling operations at its sites in Baytown and Beaumont, Texas.

The additional capacity is expected to come online in 2026, with the company planning to build additional units to reach a global plastic recycling capacity of 500,000 tons per year by 2027.

“We are solutions providers, and this multimillion-dollar investment will enhance our ability to convert hard-to-recycle plastics into raw materials that produce valuable new products,” says Karen McKee, president of ExxonMobil Product Solutions.

The technology deployed in Baytown works at scale, which McKee says has given ExxonMobil confidence to expand its capacity toward 500,000 tons of plastic scrap per year globally.

“We’re proud of this proprietary technology and the role it can play in helping establish a circular economy for plastics and reducing plastic waste,” she says.

The company says its planned investment will add 175,000 tons per year of chemical recycling capacity at Baytown and Beaumont combined, bringing ExxonMobil’s total capacity to 250,000 tons per year.

ExxonMobil says it is continuing to develop additional chemical recycling projects at its refining and manufacturing sites in North America, Europe and Asia as it works toward its goal of 500,000 tons of scrap consumed globally by 2027.

The company has customers for its end products in more than 15 countries in multiple sectors, including food-contact packaging and pet food, and notes that demand is increasing.

According to ExxonMobil, its Exxtend pyrolysis-based chemical recycling technology complements traditional, mechanical recycling by transforming plastic scrap into raw materials that can be used to make many valuable products—from fuels to lubricants to high-performance chemicals and plastics.

The company says its methodology can address a broader range of discarded plastic that might not always be mechanically recycled.

Its first Baytown facility started up in 2022 and now represents one of the largest chemical recycling facilities in North America, having processed more than 35,000 tons of plastic scrap as of October 2024.

On the supply side, ExxonMobil is part of a joint venture formed in 2021 with New Hampshire-based Cyclyx International intended to improve collection and sorting of plastic scrap.

That effort comprised a portion of an investigative report that questioned to what extent the companies were meeting their targets to recycle mixed, discarded plastic via pyrolysis technology. Pyrolysis as a chemical recycling technique has, likewise, been the subject of scrutiny.

Metals

Trademark Metals Recycling opens new Florida facility

Trademark Metals Recycling LLC (TMR), Tampa, Florida, has opened an advanced metal recovery facility in Sumter County, Florida.

TMR and Sumter County Economic Development held a ribbon-cutting ceremony October of last year, with officials from the Board of Sumter County Commissioners, the city of Bushnell, Florida, and others in attendance.

The 100,000-square-foot facility encompasses several buildings, and Sumter County says years of planning and cooperation among TMR’s management team, Sumter County Economic Development, SECO Energy and the city of Bushnell went into its development.

TMR invested approximately $150 million in the facility, not including the land purchase. The facility has 67 employees across two shifts and works with various contractors to meet its operational needs, according to Sumter County officials.

The facility will process auto shredder residue generated by TMR’s internal shredding operations.

“We are very fortunate to have a partner such as TMR investing in our community,” Board of Sumter County Commissioners Vice Chairman Jeffrey A. Bogue says. “The technology that TMR is bringing to this community will create long-term, high-paying jobs while providing for sustainability in the recycling industry.”

TMR is a wholly owned subsidiary of The David J. Joseph Co. (DJJ), Cincinnati, which is part of Nucor Corp’s family of companies.

Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Nucor and its affiliates make steel and steel products at facilities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Nucor, through DJJ, also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and hot-briquetted iron/direct-reduced iron; supplies ferroalloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap.