Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company has disclosed plans to invest $1 billion in Nigeria in expansion of its business in over five years.
The Chief Executive Officer, (CEO) of the company, Mr Zoran Bogdanovic disclosed this during his visit to President Tinubu where it noted the company’s long-term commitment to Nigeria.
In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Coca-Cola noted that it generates around N300 billion in revenues per year from Nigeria and returns N90 billion back to the government.
Furthermore, the company noted that since 2013, it has spent around $1.5 billion in its Nigerian business on capacity expansion, supply distribution and logistics.
According to Mr. Zoran Bogdanovic, “That assurance gives us the confidence to continue our investments. Since 2013, we have invested $ 1.5 billion in Nigeria in capacity expansion, transformation of our supply chain infrastructure capabilities, training and development.”
“I am very pleased to announce that, with a predictable and enabling environment in place, we plan to invest an additional $1 billion over the next five years. We believe Nigeria’s potential is tremendous, and we are committed to working with the government to realise this potential.”
President Tinubu praised Coca-Cola for its enduring partnership with Nigeria and for creating over 3,000 jobs across its nine production facilities.
Addressing the delegation, he emphasized that private sector partnerships, which drive sustained investments, are key to his administration’s comprehensive reforms aimed at enhancing the business environment. He also assured that the government would continue working with Coca-Cola to boost investments and tackle environmental challenges, including climate change.
The company’s investment will come as a confidence booster to the federal government in its drive to attract foreign investors despite significant exits in the past few years. However, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) had earlier in the year accused Coca-Cola of misleading trade descriptions and unfair marketing tactics.
The FCCPC stated that Coca-Cola Nigeria Ltd and NBC misled the public by claiming that the ‘Original Taste, Less Sugar’ variant had the same formulation as the ‘Original Taste’ variant.
The Commission further noted that the matter of Abuse of Dominance, along with the appropriate penalties under the FCCPA and the Administrative Penalties Regulation 2020 (APR), has been reserved for future regulatory action, with penalties to be imposed in due course.