The Greenock-based company, one of Scotland’s biggest exporters, is already present in 52 countries and is fast diversifying its product range into speciality and packaging paper and boards, as well as developing new markets.

The firm, which buys paper directly from mills around the world and then acts as a broker, has identified strong growth opportunities in economies such as Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Chile.

It already exports hundreds of containers per month to buyers located in regions such as the Indian subcontinent, the Far East, Turkey and Africa.

The Santander funding includes a £3m trade bills facility and a £2m foreign exchange line.

“We are constantly developing our presence in new markets, and the comprehensive support from Santander has been key to our expansion plans in South America,” said PG Paper chief executive Poonam Gupta, who owns the business with her husband Puneet.

“We seek out new, ongoing opportunities that offer a win-win situation to our partners and clients. Our local knowledge, multilingual abilities and understanding of the many paper grades we work with ensures we can offer paper for alternative and innovative uses across all our markets.”

Gupta received an OBE for services to business and charity earlier this year. PG Paper works closely with a number of charities, including Action for Children Scotland and Oxfam’s South Asian campaign.

Established in 2003, PG Paper has seen its turnover grow to £36m, up 50% year-on-year at the end of March 2017. In 2015 the business acquired some of Tullis Russell’s brands after the papermaker collapsed.