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EBRD finances soft drinks bottling plant in Albania
A new Albanian bottling company, inaugurated yesterday, has become the first local producer of soft drinks in Albania with the assistance of a USD 2.9 million (ECU 2.4 million) investment by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The company is Coca-Cola Bottling Enterprise Tirana s.r.l. (CCBET), an established joint venture between Aziende Commerciali Industriali Estero, an Italian company; The Coca-Cola Export Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company; and Invest p.f., an Albanian state-owned organisation. The investment agreement with the EBRD was signed on 24 November 1993.
"The Albanian consumers will be the real beneficiaries of this project. They'll be able to buy locally-produced soft drinks, which are cheaper than the imported drinks which currently dominate the market", said Ron Freeman, First Vice-President of the EBRD. "The man on the street will have more choice at a lower price."
The new bottling plant will have a positive effect on employment, as it is expected to create approximately 500 private sector jobs in Albania within 3 years, both directly at the bottling facility and indirectly through jobs generated at CCBET's suppliers, distributors and retailers.
The EBRD has co-financed the construction of the soft drinks bottling facility, approximately 5km west of Tirana, which will be engaged in the production, packaging, distribution, marketing and sale of Coca-Cola and other soft drinks for the entire Albanian market.
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