Ball Corporation Agrees To Acquire Extruded Aluminum Packaging Business in Mexico, Form JV in South America

BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) announced today that it has entered into agreements to acquire Envases del Plata S.A. de C.V., a leading extruded aluminum aerosol packaging producer with a manufacturing facility in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and to form a new joint venture in Argentina that will combine Ball's and Envases del Plata Group's aerosol packaging operations in Argentina and in Brazil. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of October 2012, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

"These actions are consistent with our Drive for 10 strategy to broaden Ball's geographic reach and expand into new products and capabilities," said John A. Hayes, Ball's president and chief executive officer. "The acquisition in Mexico will provide a platform to grow our North American extruded aluminum packaging business, and in Argentina the new joint venture will leverage the combined strengths of Ball's steel aerosol can business in Argentina with Envases' extruded aluminum aerosol business in Argentina and Brazil."

The San Luis Potosi plant produces extruded aluminum aerosol cans for personal care and household products to customers in North, Central and South America. It employs approximately 150 people and operates five manufacturing lines.

The plant will become part of Ball's Food & Household Products Packaging Division, Americas, and will complement Ball's existing aluminum aerosol business in Europe, Ball Aerocan, and the North American extruded aluminum aerosol slug business that Ball acquired in 2010. Ball is the largest supplier of extruded aluminum slugs in the world, and this acquisition provides a new end market for Ball's products including the company's ReAl™ technology that enables the use of recycled material and meaningful lightweighting in the manufacture of extruded aluminum packaging.

The new Argentine joint venture, called Envases-Ball, will include Ball's steel aerosol can plants in Buenos Aires and San Luis, Argentina, and Envases' extruded aluminum packaging plants in the same locations and in Manaus, Brazil. Envases will own 75 percent of the joint venture, and Ball will own 25 percent. Ball will provide technical and other assistance to the business and under the terms of the agreement can elect to acquire or exit the joint venture in the future.

Ball Corporation is a supplier of high quality packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,500 people worldwide and reported 2011 sales of more than $8.6 billion. For the latest Ball news and for other company information, please visit http://www.ball.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available on our website and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; political instability and sanctions; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the recent global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including U.S. FDA and other actions affecting products filled in our containers, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; uncertainties surrounding the U.S. government budget and debt limit; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

SOURCE Ball Corporation