Crown Holdings has elected Wayne T. Smith to its board of directors, effective 21 October 2026, expanding the board to eleven members. Smith was chairman and chief executive of BASF Corporation, the North American arm of BASF SE, from 2015 to 2021, and currently chairs Air Products and Chemicals and sits on the board of ONEOK.
Why this mattersCrown adds a former chemicals-industry chief executive to an enlarged eleven-member board, bringing large-company operating experience to its governance.
- Wayne T. Smith elected to Crown Holdings' board effective 21 October 2026
- The board now has eleven members
- Smith was chairman and CEO of BASF Corporation from 2015 to 2021, a business with approximately USD 20bn in annual revenue
- He currently chairs the board of Air Products and Chemicals, a company with approximately USD 12bn in annual revenue
- He also serves as a director of ONEOK, a company with approximately USD 33bn in annual revenue
Crown Holdings reported Q3 2026 net sales of USD 3.7bn, up from USD 3.2bn a year earlier, and adjusted diluted EPS of USD 2.39, up 7%. Global beverage can volumes rose more than 6%, with double-digit growth in Asia, 6% in North America and 4% in Europe, while a Middle East conflict cost about USD 17m of segment income. Crown narrowed its full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance to USD 8.35-8.45 from USD 8.30-8.50.
Why this mattersVolume growth in all three regions, with Asia up double digits, shows can demand holding up despite a USD 17m quarterly hit from the Middle East conflict.
- Q3 2026 adjusted diluted EPS was USD 2.39 against USD 2.24, up 7%; net sales were USD 3.7bn against USD 3.2bn.
- Global beverage can volumes rose more than 6% in Q3, with Asia up double digits, North America up 6% and Europe up 4%; full-year target 4-5%.
- Segment income was USD 484m against USD 490m, including a roughly USD 17m hit from the Middle East conflict; a similar impact is assumed for Q4.
- Full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance narrowed to USD 8.35-8.45 from USD 8.30-8.50; Q4 guidance USD 1.63-1.73.
- Adjusted free cash flow was USD 771m over nine months, with full-year guidance of at least USD 950m.
- More than USD 700m returned to shareholders in nine months, including USD 598m of buybacks and USD 115m of dividends.
US tariffs on aluminium have raised North American can prices by roughly 50% since early 2025, and Canadian brewers and can printers are shifting purchases to Chinese suppliers selling at about a one-third discount. Canada's counter-tariffs exempt food and beverage packaging inputs, but can contracts on both sides of the border are priced off the tariff-inflated US Midwest aluminium benchmark. Canadian brewers fill about 3.7 billion cans a year, and one canned-cocktail producer says a five-cent difference per can decides profitability.
Why this mattersTariff-driven aluminium cost inflation is eroding North American can makers' price competitiveness and accelerating Canadian brewers' shift toward Chinese-made cans.
- North American can prices have risen about 50% since early 2025 following US tariffs on aluminium
- The US has imposed 50% tariffs on Canadian aluminium; Canada's counter-tariffs exempt goods used in food and beverage packaging
- Chinese-made cans sell at roughly a one-third discount to US-made cans, a gap reaching 8 cents per can
- Can contracts on both sides of the border are priced off the US Midwest aluminium benchmark
- Canada's brewers fill about 3.7 billion cans a year
- Caravan Bev Co, which imports Chinese cans into Canada, reports a 30% increase in business since 2025
Crown Holdings is proceeding with a USD 100m (BRL 500m) expansion of its Ponta Grossa aluminium can plant in Parana, Brazil, adding a third high-speed line that lifts the site's capacity from 2.4bn to 3.6bn cans a year. Ponta Grossa's planning institute Iplan and Crown signed a compromise agreement on 1 September 2026 under the project's neighbourhood impact study, published in the municipal gazette on 17 September, following an installation licence granted on 18 February 2026. Crown announced the project in May 2025 and says the expanded plant will become its largest can operation in Brazil.
Why this mattersA 1.2bn-can addition makes Ponta Grossa Crown's largest Brazilian plant, tightening competition for beverage filler contracts in southern Brazil.
- Investment estimated at USD 100m (BRL 500m).
- Site capacity rises from 2.4bn to 3.6bn cans a year, an increase of about 50%, or 1.2bn units.
- Compromise agreement with Ponta Grossa's Iplan institute signed 1 September 2026, published in the municipal gazette on 17 September 2026.
- Instituto Agua e Terra granted the installation licence for the expansion on 18 February 2026.
- The project is expected to create more than 300 direct and indirect jobs; licensing documents cited about 350.
- Crown Holdings announced the third line in May 2025 to serve alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage demand in southern Brazil.
Ball Corporation and Crown Holdings are investing a combined USD 523m (INR 50bn) in two aluminium beverage can projects at Uttar Pradesh's integrated manufacturing and logistics clusters. Crown has started construction of a two-line plant at Unnao costing USD 220m (INR 21bn), first announced in April 2026 and due on stream in the second half of 2027. Ball Beverage Packaging India has selected a site at Meerut for a plant with a proposed investment of USD 303m (INR 29bn), granted incentives under Uttar Pradesh's 2023 policy for FDI and Fortune-listed investors.
Why this mattersTwo can makers building in one Indian cluster, with Canpack alongside, adds domestic can supply from 2027 and cuts beverage brands' dependence on imports.
- Ball Corporation and Crown Holdings are investing a combined USD 523m (INR 50bn) in two aluminium beverage can projects in Uttar Pradesh.
- Ball Beverage Packaging India has selected a site at the Meerut cluster for a plant with a proposed investment of USD 303m (INR 29bn).
- Crown Holdings has begun construction of a two-line plant on nearly 40 acres at Unnao, investing USD 220m (INR 21bn).
- Crown's Unnao plant was announced in April 2026, is due to start in the second half of 2027 and is expected to make about 2.2 billion cans a year once fully operational.
- Crown expects the plant to create more than 200 direct and over 1,500 indirect jobs, with United Breweries, part of Heineken, among its long-term customers.
- Canpack India is building a plant of about 26 hectares at Unnao with capacity of about 1.3 billion cans a year, taking the three companies' combined commitment to about USD 685m (INR 65.66bn).
Crown Holdings broke ground on 9 September 2026 on a new beverage can plant in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, its first facility on the Indian subcontinent. The plant will have two lines with combined capacity of about 2.2 billion aluminium cans a year, with operations due to start in the second half of 2027. A long-term supply contract with United Breweries, a Heineken subsidiary, underpins the project, which Crown first announced in April 2026.
Why this mattersA 2.2 billion-can plant with United Breweries volume behind it sets the entry benchmark for rivals weighing Indian beverage can capacity before 2027.
- Groundbreaking took place on 9 September 2026 in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh.
- The plant will have two production lines with combined capacity of approximately 2.2 billion aluminium beverage cans a year.
- Operations are scheduled to start in the second half of 2027.
- The facility is Crown's first on the Indian subcontinent.
- A long-term customer contract with United Breweries Limited, a Heineken subsidiary, underpins the project.
- Crown first announced the investment in April 2026.
- Crown now guides to commercial start-up at the India plant in Q1 2028
- Capacity expansion projects in Brazil, Greece and Spain remain on plan
Crown Holdings has broken ground on its first beverage can manufacturing facility in India, at Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, with construction starting after an April 2026 announcement. The plant will feature two lines with combined annual capacity of about 2.2 billion aluminium cans, targeting the growing Indian beverage market, with operations set to begin in the second half of 2027.
Why this mattersCrown gains a domestic Indian can supply base of about 2.2 billion units from the second half of 2027, ahead of rival local capacity.
- Groundbreaking took place on 9 September 2026 in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, India
- The plant will have two production lines with combined annual capacity of approximately 2.2 billion aluminium beverage cans
- The facility was announced in April 2026
- Operations are scheduled to start in the second half of 2027
- Crown maintains full-year 2026 capital expenditure guidance of approximately $550 million
- Crown representatives met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after the groundbreaking ceremony
- Crown Holdings reported annual revenue of USD 13.3bn and net income of USD 784m
- About 70% of the Unnao facility's planned volume is under long-term supply commitments
Crown Holdings' Brazilian unit, Crown Embalagens, will invest about USD 97m (BRL 500m) to expand its beverage can plant in Ponta Grossa, Parana state. A commitment agreement with the Ponta Grossa municipality was signed on 1 September 2026, and the project is expected to make the site Crown's largest can operation in Latin America. The expansion is expected to create more than 300 jobs.
Why this mattersThe expansion makes Ponta Grossa Crown's largest Latin American can plant, adding regional capacity that competing can makers must match to hold share.
- Investment estimated at approximately BRL 500m (USD 97m).
- Commitment agreement signed with Ponta Grossa municipality on 1 September 2026.
- Environmental installation licence for the expansion was issued by IAT in February 2026.
- Project includes a new industrial building for production, administrative and support areas.
- Expansion expected to make Ponta Grossa Crown's largest can operation in Latin America.
- More than 300 new jobs expected to be created.
