Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trade advantage attracts packaging giants

One of the world’s largest packaging companies will create a total of 170 jobs in Northern Ireland. This is the latest company seeking to take advantage of the region’s “best of both worlds” post-Brexit trading position.

Ardagh Metal Packaging announced on Friday that it plans to build a US$200 million beverage can factory near Belfast, which will export beverages to the UK and EU markets.

The investment is one of the largest greenfield projects in the region Brexit Take effect and will be regarded as a vote of confidence in the dispute Northern Ireland Agreement.

The 2019 agreement allows Northern Ireland to freely enter the wider UK market while keeping it in the European Union’s single commodity market. This region is the only place in Europe where you can enter these two markets for free.

Although the arrangement has received widespread support from companies in the region, as negotiations with the European Union continue, the British government has threatened to suspend some of the agreements.

Lord David Frost, the Secretary of State for Brexit, claimed that the agreement imposed excessive inspections on cargo shipped from the UK through Ireland to Northern Ireland and threatened to activate it. Article 16 The transcendence mechanism in the treaty. Negotiations with the European Union continued in Brussels on Friday.

Embassy in Luxembourg AldaGlass manufacturing originated in Dublin, indicating that its “state-of-the-art” factory will meet the “increasing needs of AMP beverage customers in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Europe.”

The relatively low labor cost in the region is another factor in the company’s choice of location. People close to the deal said the plant will create 170 high-quality jobs, including technicians and engineers.

Oliver Graham, CEO of AMP, said: “We are very pleased to invest in Northern Ireland to support the sustainability needs of our customers, and to further reduce our carbon footprint by getting closer to our end customers.” Its customers include facilities in Lisbon. Coca-Cola at the factory.

Last year, Secretary of State Michael Gove, who was in charge of upgrading, stated that under the agreement, Northern Ireland’s businesses would get the “best of both worlds” and many employers hoped that the Brexit arrangements would continue.

Ardagh’s investment is in the Northern Ireland pharmaceutical group Almac announced that it will create 1,000 jobs in the area As part of the next three years Global expansion.

Almac, which is headquartered in Craigavon, which develops and manufactures pharmaceuticals, praised the agreement, telling its customers that post-Brexit transactions provide “unique, unconstrained and flexible access to the UK, Europe and other regions.”

Not all companies are enthusiastic about the agreement Win-win For Northern Ireland companies, if Article 16 is triggered, many people are afraid of the prospect of more destruction and uncertainty.

“Our exporters are currently enjoying their lives,” said Stephen Kelly, CEO of Manufacturing NI, a lobby group.

The booming cross-border trade proves this.Ireland imports from Northern Ireland Jumped 60% According to official Irish statistics, the first nine months of this year compared with the same period last year.

“[Businesses are] Worried that the uncertainty created by triggering Article 16 will be considered real [legal] Dangerous,” Kelly added. “Once completed, Northern Ireland will be considered legally challenging, and the board and customer orders will begin to be affected on the same day. This is the reality. “

A business leader who asked not to be named said: “The trigger for Article 16 will create another uncertainty, if not longer, it will continue for 12 months, just like we are entering the Christmas period.”

He said that an unnamed manufacturing company had planned to transfer some operations from Ireland to Northern Ireland in order to benefit from these two jurisdictions, but they “wait and see” how the UK-EU negotiations proceed.

On November 20th, Damian McGenity, a part-time beef farmer and spokesperson of the border community against Brexit, will organize protests at five locations along the border. .

“The order is full and the business is recovering well [from Covid-19]. This is the last thing we need,” McGenity said. “Most businessmen want to continue doing business. ”