Building a Clear Vision with Arglass, a Sustainable Glass Manufacturer

When running a business, it helps to remember the modern adage, “You can’t predict, but you can prepare.”  

There are countless examples of business plans and budgeting templates to help get your business off the ground. Yet, there will always be pieces of the puzzle that have an impact you could never have expected.  

That’s where Gas South comes in. We believe building an effective natural gas plan based on a customer’s unique needs is one of the easiest ways to keep things running smoothly. For Arglass, a sustainable glass manufacturer, we listened to their long-term goals and found custom solutions that helped them build their first U.S. plant, guarantee production output and prepare for growth over time. 

Budgeting a New Build

In 2015, Arglass started searching for a place to build a state-of-the-art production site to create glass products based on the company’s founding principles of flexibility, efficiency and sustainability. The ideal location would have a highly skilled workforce, affordability, educational infrastructure, and proximity to East Coast markets. They found all of it in Valdosta, Ga.—plus room to grow. 

But they needed one more component to start construction plans. Before acquiring financing for a multimillion-dollar ground-up build, Arglass had to price out equipment, labor and energy supply. They challenged Gas South to secure a price (dictated by a notoriously volatile market) for natural gas they wouldn’t even burn for several years. 

Terms as Clear as Glass

For complex deals like this one, Gas South’s expert team usually takes the time to guide customers through each contract option, weighing the pros and cons. In Arglass’s case, however, they knew exactly what they required.  

To begin with, they needed a reliable, firm supply. Arglass manufactures custom food and beverage glass containers for customers across the country, and the equipment they planned to install would have to run constantly. If the furnace cooled, it would seize up and halt all operations.  

They also needed a long-term contract to guarantee a rate, which would help ensure their construction budget was approved. While financial hedging is usually a spur-of-the-moment tactic that takes advantage of pricing a year or so in the future, Gas South hedged Arglass’s natural gas purchase years ahead of gas flowing. We leveraged our in-house superstructure—teams of traders, schedulers, legal, compliance and finance experts—to make this challenging request a reality.  

In 2019, with fuel and financing secured, they broke ground on a plant that could reflect their founding principles without sacrificing performance. 

Bonus: Igniting Community Change

By 2023, the plant produced millions of glass containers a year, and Valdosta had blossomed into one of the country’s most active economic development areas. In the years following Arglass’s build-out, Valdosta received $742.3 million in capital investment, acquiring nine industries, facilitating 28 industry expansions and adding 1,150 jobs.  

Many employees in those jobs were trained locally. In 2022, Gas South and Arglass established a joint scholarship program for Wiregrass Georgia Technical College that donated $20,000 over 20 semesters. After the scholarship was implemented, Wiregrass saw an uptick in enrollment, particularly in manufacturing specialties like mechanical, electromechanical and automation. 

Those students will also be able to grow as the company grows, as Arglass will soon have 320 additional jobs to fill. In 2025, the company will launch its first expansion. Furnace 2 will increase their output significantly and extend Arglass’s principles of innovation, flexibility and sustainability to produce a variety of containers and serve more customers.  

Arglass is engaging Gas South again to renew their agreement with Furnace 1 and its Furnace 2 expansion. 

In Conclusion

Gas South tapped into its flexible corporate structure, talented and creative team and dynamic local connections to support Arglass’s project from its origination to its expansion. Along the way, we supported their site selection journey and partnered to advance the local workforce. But our most significant impact was our forward-minded pricing solutions that helped them plan, prepare and build a plant that reflected their business goals. Now, their sustainable factory has become an inspiration for the entire glass manufacturing industry.  

To learn about how we can help your business grow, contact Sales@GasSouth.com today.