Azerbaijan, Baku, July 29 / Trend, I. Khalilova /
Over its 15 years on the local market, the Coca-Cola Icecek Company's investments in Azerbaijan have reached $100 million, General Director Lisani Atasayan said.
Atasayan lauded the company's activities yesterday at the opening ceremony of a new production line marking the fifteenth anniversary of the birth of Coca-Cola's first factory in Baku. Turkish Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan was also in attendance.
"The company's investments are the largest in Azerbaijan's non-oil industries," Atasayan said. "As one of the biggest taxpayers in Azerbaijan, Coca-Cola Bottlers has remitted $95 million to the budget. We continue to invest in Azerbaijan's developing economy in accordance with market demands."
He added that the company continues to lead the sector and the beverages industry in Azerbaijan.
"Our Baku factory has become a pioneer in Azerbaijan, receiving the ISO 14001, ISO 18001 and ISO 22001 certificates," he said. Atasayan also noted continuing development at the Baku factory, which is one of the leading Coca-Cola plants in the CIS.
"We have friendly relations with Azerbaijan that have deep historical roots," Coca-Cola Icecek Company International Operations President Huseyin Akin said. "We are trying to strengthen this friendship, redirecting successful investments in the business world. Successful projects implemented at our factories in Turkey will also be introduced in other countries."
The Coca-Cola Icecek Company was established in 1994 and holds a 99.86-percent stake in the Azerbaijan Coca-Cola Bottlers. The company carries out the production, sale and distribution of beverages. The company serves 35 million customers with 20 factories in Turkey, Pakistan and 10 Central Asian and East Asian countries.
