RPC Group completes acquisition of US packaging manufacturer

Packaging firm RPC Group has completed the acquisition of Letica Group, a US plastic packaging manufacturer, for up to £511m in order to expand its reach in North America.

The FTSE 250 company paid £391m up-front to Letica's shareholders, which represents 7.3 times Letica's adjusted earnings before interest tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for 2016.

The additional £120m will be paid when Letica achieves EBITDA greater than $140m and up to $201m over the two-years starting 1 July.

Letica generated unaudited sales of $455m and adjusted EBITDA of $67m in 2016.

Chief executive Pim Vervaat said: "This is another important step in the implementation of our Vision 2020 strategy allowing RPC to create a meaningful presence in North America through a well-invested platform with leading positions in growing end markets."