Coca-Cola to invest US$ 6.4 billion in Brazil
Folha de S. Paulo
The President of the Coca-Cola company, Muhtar Kent, said yesterday the company will make investments of R$ 11 billion (US$ 6.4 billion) between 2010 and 2014 to increase its operations in Brazil. The company wants to take advantage of the reflexes caused by the good moment of the national economy and the attraction of events such as the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. The value of the investment is 75% bigger than what was invested between 2005 and 2009.
The funds will be invested in sectors such as marketing, operations, enlargement of units throughout the country and in the purchase of equipment. Strategically, the company does not detail the regions in which the investments will be made. An estimate of the press office of the company points out that in the period between 2010 and 2014 nearly 22,000 direct jobs may be generated.
The company currently has 38 thousand employees in Brazil and generates 380 thousand indirect jobs. "Brazil is one of the main markets of Coca-Cola in the world. Over the past 25 years, we have seen our sales volume in this nation grow 50 times", said Kent during an event in Curitiba.
Yesterday Kent opened the new unit of Leão Junior, a company which produces dry and iced teas in the municipality of Fazenda Rio Grande, in the region of Curitiba. The company, which was formerly headquartered in Curitiba and employs 300 people, was acquired by multinational last year from a traditional family of the capital of the State.