Australian packaging major, Amcor Ltd., is strengthening its position in the growing Indian packaging sector to achieve organic and inorganic growth. Meanwhile, reports say, the company plans to split its divisions - retaining its plastics divisions and establishing a new company for its other units.

Ralf Wunderlich, president & managing director of Amcor Flexible Asia Pacific, speaking to Plastics News in Mumbai, said the company was expanding in India through a series of strategic acquisitions.

The company acquired Uniglobe Packaging Ltd. last year and Alcan Packaging earlier.

"Our India business generates $100+ million revenue annually and is registering double-digit [annual] growth," Plastics News quoted him as saying.

"Our India operation is to serve the growing Indian flexible packaging market, therefore, we are saved from the weakening rupee against the dollar in the last quarter," Wunderlich said.

"We are planning to grow organically and inorganically in the Indian market," he said. "We know India is a big country and is a divided in the four regions and we look up to have our presence in all the four regions."

In India, Amcor has plants in Daman, Chaken and Haridwar.

Importantly for Amcor, India's packaged food industry is likely to double to $30 billion by 2015 on the back of arrival of multinationals in the sector and modern retail trade, accordingly to industry body Assocham.

Meanwhile in a related report, Amcor is said to be splitting up its operation.

Plastics News reported in August that the new entity being created from the split--Australasian and Packaging Distribution Ltd. (AAPD) will be a separate listed company by the end 2013.

AAPD will manage the fiber, glass and beverage can packaging operations in Australia and New Zealand, and Amcor's packaging distribution operations in North America and Australia.

This demerger of the multinational packaging company, headquartered in Hawthorn, comes after announcement of strong earnings from Amcor's flexible and rigid plastic packaging businesses.

Company officials believe the new AAPD business, with annual sales of A$2 billion (US$1.8 billion), will be well placed for success with large cost savings expected over the next three years.