Vetropack resumes production in Ukraine
06/2023: Vetropack is cautiously ramping up operations again at our Gostomel plant in Ukraine. We began heating up one of the site's two remaining furnaces at the end of May. The production facility in Gostomel was severely damaged during a Russian military attack at the end of February 2022. Now, as production resumes, the site is prepared for potential new crisis scenarios.
After an interruption of just over a year, production of glass packaging is starting up again at Vetropack’s Ukrainian site, PrJSC Gostomel near Kyiv. From 25 May onwards, the first melting furnace was brought up to temperature and filled.
Vetropack is initially resuming the production of white glass for food and beverages, as this is where we see the greatest demand. “The domestic market has slowly been recovering, and many companies are restarting production,” says Pavel Prinko, General Manager of the Business Unit Ukraine/Republic of Moldova. “We expect a year-on-year increase of around seven percent in demand for glass packaging for food and soft drinks in 2023, which is in line with our production capacity.” The second furnace will start operating in the near future.
The priority in resuming operations is to protect the workforce, and the site is also prepared for all possible emergency scenarios. Vetropack has developed various engineering scenarios so the energy supply can be guaranteed in case of blackouts. We have remodelled the electrical distribution system and installed additional generators. Appropriate contingency plans have also been put in place for potential disruptions to the supply of natural gas or oil.
In summer 2022, Vetropack set up a foundation to support employees whose house or apartment was destroyed, or who were seriously injured in the hostilities. The Vetropack Gostomel Foundation began paying out the first relief funds at the start of 2023.
Read more
