Coca-Cola to transfer bottling operations to local partners in Rajasthan, two other regions

New Delhi: Soft drinks maker Coca-Cola on Friday said it will transfer bottling operations of the company to local partners in three regions.

Coca-Cola's bottling arm Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB) is transferring bottling operations in Rajasthan, Bihar, and Northeast and parts of West Bengal to its existing partners in these three regions. The bottling operations in these territories will now be owned by Kandhari Global Beverages, SLMG Beverages and Moon Beverages respectively, according to a statement.

The move is part of HCCB's strategy to franchise some regional operations to local partners.

Now, the Rajasthan market will be owned and operated by Kandhari Global Beverages which is currently operating in parts of Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh.

The Bihar market will be owned and operated by SLMG Beverages, the company's partner in the state, which also operates in Uttarakhand, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

The Northeast market and select regions of West Bengal will be owned and operated by Moon Beverages which is currently operating in parts of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, the statement said.

HCCB India CEO Juan Pablo Rodriguez said this business transfer "ensures the right level of investments can be undertaken in all parts of the business while bringing both scale and contiguity to the business".

"We are in the long-term growth prospects of our beverages business in India and believe this move will help accelerate the Coca-Cola system, enabling us to win in the market and provide greater value to local communities," he said.

Incorporated in 1997, HCCB operates 16 factories in India. It manufactures and sells 60 products across seven categories, including Coca-Cola, Thumbs Up, Sprite, Minute Maid, Maaza, SmartWater, Kinley, Limca, and Fanta.

In the financial year ended March 2023, HCCB had reported a 41.51 per cent increase in its revenue from operations at Rs 12,735.12 crore. Its net profit in the fiscal jumped two-fold to Rs 809.32 crore.