£75m build starts on world’s largest cardboard plant

Ground has been broken at the Cheshire site of the largest and most technically advanced corrugated cardboard manufacturing facility in the world.

Progroup, supported by Peel Logistics Property, has launched the £75m build to be delivered by contractor Buckingham at Ellesmere Port.

The 328,000sq ft plant will stand on the former 45-acre Cabot Carbon site adjacent to the M53 motorway and when fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2018 will generate up to 500 million square metres of cardboard each year.

The new state-of-the-art operation will replace Prowell’s current facility at Pioneer Business Park, which was also built by Peel, and will feature an upgraded corrugated board machine enabling Prowell to meet increased demand.

Prowell’s ambition to have the most efficient and powerful corrugated sheet mega board plant in the world will be further supported by space for an additional packaging park model facility of up to 468,230sq ft for which outline planning has also been submitted.

James Whittaker from Peel Logistics Property said: “It’s fantastic that post the Brexit decision a European operator such as Prowell is committed to investing and expanding their operation in Ellesmere Port, giving manufacturing and the economy a huge boost in the region.

“Enabling works that includes remediation of the site and construction will progress in tandem to ensure we deliver this colossal facility by quarter four in 2018.”

Jürgen Heindl, chief executive of Progroup added: “There is a correlation between the timing of building a new plant in the UK and the impending Brexit.

“It sends a strong signal and shows that Progroup believes that the economy and the manufacturing sector in the United Kingdom will develop positively over the long term.

“From my perspective, manufacturing will become increasingly important as the British economy restructures after Brexit. For this to happen, the competitiveness of industry in general needs to be strengthened.

“Prowell is gearing up for this with the most efficient flagship plant in the industry and will adopt a ‘low-cost, high-tech’ strategy.”