The Indian laminated tube manufacturer, Essel Packaging Ltd. (Mumbai; www.essel.com) is still very much on course for strong growth. After a successful fiscal 2001 (30.3.), with an increase in sales to INR 2.3 bn (2.1 bn), which is at about EUR 57m, and a growth in EBITDA to INR 879m (786m) (at about EUR 21m), the company that is owned by wealthy Indian businessman Subhash Chandra has now purchased Propack Holding AG (CH-6302 Zug; www.propack.ch) for USD 11m. With a current capacity of 2.8 bn tubes a year, Essel Propack regards itself as the world´s number one in laminated tubes ahead of Betts – formerly Cortlauds – and the Cebal group, which is part of Pechiney. The main reason for the acquisition was the development of a new technology by Propack enabling throughput in tube production to be increased by 30 percent to 340 tubes per minute.

The tube market is characterised by worldwide concentration of the customer market. Alongside the pharmaceuticals sector, it is above all the major toothpaste manufacturers who require their suppliers to have a global presence and increasingly to also have tube-filling expertise. Colgate and Unilever already command over 50 percent of the world market. In their wake, Essel Propack (which has contractual relationships with both companies) is targeting strategically underdeveloped markets such as eastern Europe, China and North Africa, where significant conversion potential exists for laminated tubes as a substitute for lead and aluminium tubes. In 2005, Essel Propack aims to manufacture 7 bn tubes. The strategy also appears to be reaping rewards on the financial front: Most of the facilities are in the black – like the one taken over in Dresden in 1999. The aim is to achieve a return on capital employed (ROCE) of 30 percent, according to Essel managing director Cyrus Bagwadia.