With local manufacturing and production being at the heart of pivoting business strategies across South Africa, the South African Breweries (SAB) has officially secured a local foothold in glass manufacturing through Isanti Glass’s acquisition of Nampak Glass.
Zoleka Lisa, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at SAB says, “This transaction will create the first majority Black-Owned glass manufacturer in South Africa, delivering on SAB’s commitment to Government to convert existing suppliers to fall in line with the country’s transformation goals.”
Isanti represents the coming together of Kwande Capital, holding 60%, SAB holding 35% and the employees of Isanti with a 5% shareholding. This new operation for SAB consists of a Glass plant with three furnaces, nine forming machines, its own cullet processing facility and 690 new employees.
Lisa says, “This transaction aligns with South Africa’s national development plan, delivering on our commitment to transformation in our country. The deal also ensures the security of supply in the medium and long term for SAB, it also further enhances our circular packaging commitment through the use of cullet in our glass containers.”
Isanti Glass has an incredibly diverse client base, including beer, soft drinks, wine, spirits and food processors. To comply with competition regulations, Isanti Glass will continue to supply these clients while also becoming a key glass supplier for SAB.
AB InBev, of which SAB is wholly owned, is already one of the largest glass producers in the world. We therefore have an in-house vertical operations team with a proven track record of running such plants. This team will provide the technical input for the initial operating years of the plant. Lisa says the intention is to install world-class operating procedures and ensure the skills and knowledge are transferred to our partners in time.
“We would like to thank everyone involved in making this deal happen, and we look forward to seeing the contributions Isanti will make and the development of more black industrialists. SAB is a proudly South African company committed to creating hope for the future and accelerating inclusive growth across our value chain. Our goal, through various initiatives is to redefine the empowerment landscape in South Africa,” concluded Lisa.
