Container glass manufacturer Verallia said it expects to launch two furnaces this year – with a third set to open after a rebuild.

The first oven, in Campo Bom, Brazil, could launch as early as next month, while the second in Pescia, Italy, will open by the end of the year.

The Italian furnace will be dedicated to the food segment with production of jars.

A third furnace, in Ukraine, is currently shut for maintenance but will restart before the summer

Patrice Lucas, Verallia, CEO, said the company had enjoyed good volumes in Brazil, particularly in the beer and wine markets.

The furnace at Campo Bom is scheduled to launch in Quarter 2 this year, so sometime between April and July.

He said the market in Latin America was completely opposite to other geographical markets which had slumped in 2024.

Overall the group's income dropped nearly 50% compared to 2023 to €239 million, a reduction of 49.8%.

He said: “Market conditions in 2024 were not as good as the expected ones at the beginning of 2024.

“Consumption in Europe was soft through the year, and recovery through destocking was much slower than initial assumptions.

“Destocking was at play for most of the year. In our view, still active in spirits and on some other products, significantly exposed to export share.”

Outlook for 2025

In his outlook for 2025 he said the positive momentum seen in Latin America will continue, while the rest of the market will normalise.

“The keywords are demand normalising, stable consumer environment, uncertainty; some are even removing their mid-term guidance due to lack of predictability.

“Therefore, for 2025, we expect consumption and glass demand to normalise in most segments, but end demand still soft, and a potential negative effect impact from tariffs for the export-orientated market.

“Beyond 2025, we see consumption recovering as fundamentals are still positive. We foresee spread being neutral as inflation normalises and intra-year price variations end.

“And with installed capacity being adapted, we expect business to gradually get back to full capacity usage.

"In other words, solid fundamentals for glass packaging are still on.”