The country's booming beverage industry is creating demand for more glass bottles, with the world's largest glass container manufacturer looking to expand in New Zealand.
Owens-Illinois is expanding its Auckland manufacturing plant and will stop importing glass bottles from its other facilities in China and Australia.
The firm says it will spend $80 million building a third furnace and two glass container-moulding machines.
Owens-Illinois New Zealand general manager Brian Slingsby says the export wine market and the move from the beer sector to use glass as its preferred packaging material are driving demand for glass packaging.
He says expanding manufacturing capacity in Auckland will also help the company save on costs incurred in importing glass containers from its plants overseas.
Mr Slingsby says the expansion at its Auckland plant is expected to be complete by early 2010.
