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British American Tobacco PLC announced this week it planned to shut down its manufacturing plant in South Africa after around five decades, citing illegal cigarettes, Business Day reported. The London-based cigarette and nicotine product maker has decided to import cigarettes to serve the South African market. The South African facility employs at least 1,500 people in South Africa. On Wednesday, BAT informed the political leadership of the Lesedi Municipality, where its Heidelberg manufacturing facility is located, that it will mothball the plant by the end of this year, blaming this on illegal cigarettes. It said illicit trade in cigarettes now accounts for 75% of the domestic market. Head of corporate & regulatory affairs at BAT sub-Saharan Africa, Johnny Moloto, confirmed the closure in a statement after Business Day had first reported this development. ‘Our Heidelberg manufacturing facility is currently operating at just 35% of total capacity, making it operationally unsustainable&. The company’s decision to close the facility is final,’ the company said in a letter to the mayor of the municipality, Nelson Nkosi. ‘That said, BAT is not exiting the South African market. It will retain its secondary listing on the JSE and will continue serving customers through a supply importation model,’ the company said. The Heidelberg factory is BAT’s eighth-largest plant globally and accounts for a significant total production for both domestic consumption and export into the wider Southern African region. The decision to shut the plant comes shortly after the company decided to pull the plug on its Mozambican operation. Shares in BAT were up 1.6% to 4,308.00 pence on Thursday in London, and they rose 2.4% to R 944.29 in Johannesburg. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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