William Watkins of Radnor Hills

William Watkins, Radnor Hills’ managing director, said the deal was “an important milestone” for the company

Soft drinks and packaged water maker Radnor Hills has acquired a production site in Wales from Highland Spring Group. 

The deal for the Blaen Twyni site – located near Swansea and announced today (4 September) – included a 40-acre water source in the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, Radnor Hills said.

It would protect jobs and “support the ongoing strategic growth” of Radnor Hills’ business, it added.

“This deal represents an important milestone in the growth of our company and will allow us to keep pace with our growing consumer demand,” said Radnor Hills founder and MD William Watkins.

He continued: “The Blaen Twyni site presented us with the ideal opportunity to expand our capacity with a plentiful source of pure natural Welsh spring water, which complements the supply of pure water we already have at our source in Heartsease.

“We’re excited to welcome the highly skilled and dedicated workforce from Blaen Twyni to our Radnor family. The opportunity for us to continue to safeguard jobs in Wales and to offer further employment opportunities to the local area in the fullness of time is extremely important to us.”

Radnor Hills said it had sought an expansion opportunity in Wales for some time, to mirror its other manufacturing base in Knighton, Powys.

The family-owned business was established in 1990 and now produces 400 million units of drinks annually. It recorded revenues of £58.3m for the year ended 31 May 2022, according to accounts filed at Companies House.

Its brands include Radnor Hills spring water, Heartsease Farm, Radnor Splash and Randor Fizz.

The Blaen Twyni site, meanwhile, was acquired by Highland Spring Group as part of its purchase of Greencore’s loss-making bottled water business in 2009.

It has serviced major UK supermarkets with still, sparkling and flavoured water drinks.

Highland Spring Group did not give a reason for the disposal. Simon Oldham, the company’s managing director, said it remained focused on continuing to “invest in and develop high-quality, sustainable products which provide healthy hydration in an environmentally sustainable way”.

The news comes after Radnor Hills last week announced it had renewed its partnership with The Anti-Bullying Alliance for a third year.

The tie up will see a donation made for every pack of Radnor Fizz sold in November.