To mark its 20 years in India, Coca-Cola India on Thursday inaugurated its new greenfield bottling plant at Chatta (Mathura district) in Uttar Pradesh.
At an investment of Rs 135 crore, the new state-of-the-art plant is owned by franchise bottler Brindavan Agro Industries, which is Coca-Cola’s oldest and largest franchise bottler in India.
With this new plant, the beverage major now has 58 manufacturing plants in the country. The new plant will cater to nine districts of Western Uttar Pradesh and some parts of Madhya Pradesh.
Guy Wollaert, Senior Vice-President and Chief Technical Officer, The Coca-Cola Company, said the plant reflects the company’s belief in India as a strategic growth market with immense potential.
Investment
The company has invested $2 billion in India between 1993 and 2011. It has plans to invest $5 billion by 2020.
Venkatesh Kini, Deputy Business Unit President, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia, said that opening of the new plant was in line with the company’s long-term growth projections for business in India and will play a significant role in expanding the soft drinks business in India.
He added, “Our investments in the India are on track as we build scale, manufacturing capacity, distribution capability and a robust product portfolio to realise our business goals in India.”
The company said it has registered volume growth in India for the past 29 consecutive quarters, 19 of which saw double-digit growth. It also owns two of the country’s top selling soft drink brands — Thums Up and Sprite.
meenakshi.v@thehindu.co.in