O-I Glass invests in plant upgrades in France

O-I Glass Inc. has invested 95 million euros ($102.6 million) in two of its French glass packaging production facilities.

As a continuation of its modernization investment program, the Perrysburg, Ohio-based company says the aim of its investments is to upgrade the sustainability, flexibility and productivity of its operations in Gironcourt-sur-Vraine and Reims, adding that the investment is consistent with its recently updated environmental, social and governance (ESG) roadmap, which is aligned with its previously announced capital spending plan.

RELATED: GPI makes glass quality case for bottle bills

In Gironcourt, where the plant recently marked its 120th anniversary, O-I will invest 55 million euros ($59.4 million) in close cooperation with one of its key customers to rebuild a furnace and equip it with gas oxy advanced technology, or GOAT technology. This approach—already implemented with success in 2023 at the O-I plant in Vayres, France—uses a mix of gas and oxygen to heat the furnace. In combination with a newly installed heat recovery system to preheat raw materials and recycled glass, the new installation is expected to reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 18 percent.

In addition to the furnace upgrade, a production line at the O-I plant will be modernized to increase flexibility and capacity. The company says an average of about 80 percent of the plant’s raw materials are comprised of scrap and locally recycled glass, underlining the circular and local nature of glass packaging.

The company says the majority of the glass bottles produced in Gironcourt are supplied to customers by rail, reducing the number of trucks per week by about 250. The new expenditure into Gironcourt will increase the total investment into the site to almost 120 million euros ($129.6 million) since 2019 when O-I established a new third furnace at the site. The plant produces about 1.9 billion bottles per year, primarily for the beer market.

In Reims, O-I completed a 40-million-euro ($43.2 million) investment for a major upgrade including the full renovation of one of the plant’s two furnaces and a production line, as well as the installation of new equipment. On top of multiple operational benefits, the company says the upgrades also resulted in an overall energy reduction of about 5 percent. In total, O-I says it has invested 90 million euros ($97.2 million) into the Reims site since 2019, when its other furnace was rebuilt.

The plant, which celebrated its 150-year anniversary in 2023, is a model of O-I’s overall sustainability efforts, according to the company. An average of about 90 percent of its raw material consists of scrap and locally recycled glass, or cullet. The high cullet rate is a major contributor in reducing the plant’s CO₂ emissions by about 60 percent and fin particle emissions by about 80 percent, the company says, adding that since 2019, heat from glass packaging production has been recovered to be used in domestic homes in the local community.

O-I says its Reims plant is ideally located in the heart of the Champagne vineyards, minimizing delivery routes and time to the wineries. The plant delivers champagne bottles to nearby customers with trucks powered by grapeseed and fryer oil, resulting in a CO₂ emission reduction of about 60 percent compared to diesel fuel and about 80 percent less fine particle emissions.

The plant serves more than 1,000 customers in France. It is able to produce bottles in three colors and in sizes ranging from 0.21 to Magnum. It produces 300 million bottles per year for the Champagne, Burgundy, Loire Valley and Alsace markets.

“These very significant investments are perfectly in line with the global approach adopted by O-I to reinforce our commitment to sustainable development, increase the energy efficiency of our equipment, create more resilient supply chains and constantly seek to improve the working conditions of our teams,” says Walter Ferrer, managing director of O-I Glass for Southwest Europe. “They also demonstrate the confidence we have in our facilities in France, and our full commitment to serving our customers, our teams and the planet.”