Ireland-based corrugated packaging company Smurfit Kappa is investing €35m ($37.3m) to build a packaging plant in Morocco.
Located in Morocco’s capital city, Rabat, the plant will be the company’s first corrugated plant in the country.
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The facility covers a 25,000m² area and will allow Smurfit Kappa to supply advanced and sustainable packaging solutions efficiently to both local customers and multinationals in Morocco.
It will manufacture packaging for a range of sectors, including industrial, agriculture, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), automotive, pharmaceuticals and ceramics.
Smurfit Kappa Spain, Portugal and Morocco CEO Ignacio Sevillano said: “We are delighted that the first stone has been laid – an important milestone for the project.
“This investment is a reflection of our ‘think global, act local’ approach, which combines our global scale and expertise with our local team’s best-in-class knowledge to understand and satisfy our Moroccan customers’ needs.
“The new plant will also incorporate an Experience Centre, our 30th worldwide, which will foster enhanced collaboration with our customers and provide creative ideas and insights.”
Smurfit Kappa’s Rabat plant is expected to generate 300 direct and indirect jobs in the region.
Construction of the advanced plant began this week and the facility is expected to be operational early next year.
Smurfit Kappa Europe CEO Saverio Mayer said: “We are very proud to announce the construction of this advanced new facility, the first of its kind owned by the company in Morocco.
“Our customers will also benefit from our fully integrated and circular business model, which will ensure a reliable supply of quality, value-adding and sustainable products.”
In January this year, Smurfit Kappa announced a $33m expansion project to increase the production capacity of its plant in Fortaleza, Brazil.
As part of the expansion, the company will install a corrugator to increase the plant’s shelf-ready packaging output.
