9 Feb. 2024: British recycling, paper and packaging manufacturer DS Smith plc has responded to media speculation by confirming a preliminary expression of interest from Mondi plc regarding a merger with DS Smith. The DS Smith board said that that Mondi was considering a possible offer for DS Smith, but that no offer has been received at this stage, and that there was no certainty as to whether any proposal would be made.
Mondi also confirmed that it was in the early stages of considering "a possible all share combination with DS Smith," and added that it was routinely considering options aimed at accelerating its growth in the structurally growing packaging sectors. "There can be no certainty that an offer will be made to acquire DS Smith", the comoany explained.
According to Mondi, a combination of Mondi and DS Smith represents an "exciting opportunity to create an industry leader in European paper-based sustainable packaging solutions." The combination would improve Mondi's vertical integration, resulting in a balanced paper position, greater earnings stability through the economic cycle, and improved security of paper supply, the company said.
Mondi would benefitt from "substantial synergies as a result of vertical integration alongside highly complementary positions and expertise in containerboard, corrugated solutions and flexible packaging, in addition to expected benefits from economies of scale and efficiencies across a combined supply chain and administration," Mondi explained.
DS Smith claims to be one of the world's leading suppliers of sustainable, fibre-based corrugated packaging with activities in recycling and paper manufacturing. It employs around 30,000 people in 30 countries.
Mondi is a global integrated packaging and paper group organised into three business units: corrugated packaging, flexible packaging and uncoated fine paper. 22,000 employees work in 100 production units in more than 30 countries.
Mondi had annual sales of €8.9bn in 2022. DS Smith reported annual sales of £8.2bn (€9.6bn) for the financial year 2022/2023 that ended on 30 April 2023.