Italian pharmaceutical packaging producer Bormioli Pharma (Parma; www.bormiolipharma.com) has made a binding offer of EUR 8.9m to buy GCL Pharma (Spinetta Marengo / Italy; www.gclpharma.it), a compatriot firm specialising in the production of plastic, rubber and aluminium closures for pharmaceutical applications. The transaction is expected to complete in the coming weeks.

“With the acquisition of GCL Pharma, we will continue our growth path. We aim to strengthen our industrial footprint by adding new technologies that allow [us] to extend our product range, especially in the oral and parenteral segments, activating further business synergies,” said Bormioli Pharma CEO Andrea Lodetti.

GCL Pharma’s main premises and production plant are located in Vasto, Chieti province. The company, which is a subsidiary of the Guala Closures Group (Spinetta Marengo; www.gualaclosures.com), a manufacturer of non-refillable closures and anti-counterfeiting technologies, recorded a turnover of about EUR 8m in 2019. Marco Giovannini, chairman and CEO of Guala Closures, said the divestment will allow the group to fully focus on its core business – manufacturing of closures for spirits and wine – and specifically on high-value closures with increased growth perspectives, including connected closures. Guala Closures’ PET product line comprises the production of bottles, containers, jars, flasks and miniatures with volumes ranging from 20 ml to 5 litres and neck finishes ranging between 18 mm and 110 mm.

In October 2019, Bormioli Pharma acquired Remy & Geiser (R&G), a German company with two plants in Germany manufacturing plastic and glass packaging for the pharmaceutical industry. This was a step to further the Italian packaging specialist’s growth plan. In December 2017, Bormioli Pharma became an independent company owned by investment firm Triton.