Dunapack Packaging moves El Pack acquisition into Greek regulatory review as Prinzhorn expands European converting network

Dunapack Packaging’s Greek acquisition enters formal regulatory review

Dunapack Packaging Hellas, part of Austria-based Prinzhorn Group, has moved one step closer to expanding its corrugated packaging footprint in Greece after the acquisition of El Pack’s corrugated packaging business was formally notified to the Hellenic Competition Commission.

The transaction, first announced in late July, covers El Pack’s corrugated packaging operations in Patras, Kapandriti and Thiva. According to Prinzhorn Group, the acquired business employs approximately 250 people and will become part of the Dunapack Packaging network once regulatory approval is secured.

The transaction was formally notified to the Greek competition authority on 28 July 2026, with the public concentration notice published on 5 August. Closing is still expected during the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory clearance.

More than a Greek expansion

The importance of the transaction goes beyond the addition of three converting plants.

Prinzhorn Group describes the deal as part of its strategy to strengthen Dunapack Packaging’s position in Southeast Europe by combining El Pack’s local market knowledge with Dunapack’s wider regional network and the group’s integrated business model.

This distinction matters.

The transaction should not be interpreted as Prinzhorn moving away from paper production. Prinzhorn remains vertically integrated through its three core businesses: Dunapack Packaging, Hamburger Containerboard and Hamburger Recycling.

Instead, the El Pack transaction increases the density of the group’s converting network in a strategically important Mediterranean market while allowing it to connect local production with a broader European paper, recycling and packaging structure.

A wider European acquisition pattern is emerging

The Greek deal is also not an isolated move.

Earlier in 2026, Dunapack Packaging agreed to acquire three corrugated packaging operations from Stora Enso in southwestern Germany: Gaster Wellpappe, Wellpappe Sausenheim and PTI.

Those German operations employ around 350 people and generated approximately €74 million in turnover in 2025.

Prinzhorn explicitly stated that the German acquisition would expand Dunapack Packaging’s geographical footprint and increase the group’s internal paper integration rate.

Taken together, the German and Greek transactions reveal a broader pattern: Dunapack Packaging is progressively increasing the geographical density of its European converting network.

Scale is changing the competitive map, but specialization still matters

For the wider corrugated industry, the important question is not whether independent converters can survive consolidation.

The more relevant issue is how different business models will compete as large groups continue building stronger regional networks.

Scale can provide advantages in purchasing, capital investment, technology, geographical coverage and the ability to serve multinational customers across several markets.

Independent converters, however, can continue to compete through specialization, service, responsiveness, technical expertise and proximity to customers.

The Greek transaction therefore reflects a market that is becoming more structured, but not necessarily less diverse.

What happens next

The immediate milestone is regulatory approval in Greece.

If completed as planned in the second half of 2026, Dunapack Packaging will add Patras, Kapandriti and Thiva to a European network that Prinzhorn continues to expand through acquisition and internal investment.

The strategic message is increasingly clear: European corrugated competition is being shaped not only by individual plant capacity, but by the strength, density and integration of the networks behind those plants.