Building on its track record of providing optimal services to its customers, Sidel, a global provider of liquid packaging solutions, Tuesday in Abuja announced that it was awarded a major project in Ikeja, Nigeria, by the Nigerian Bottling Company, a member of the Coca-Cola HBC, one of the world’s largest bottlers of products for the Coca-Cola Company.

Sidel’s new bottling line will be dedicated to the extra production of carbonated cola at the Ikeja plant which is responsible for the production of all formats of the Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Light, Fanta, Sprite, Schweppes, Cappy, Five Alive and Eva brands. The new bottling line will be producing PET bottles in 500ml format at a capacity of 42,000 bottles per hour, and in 1,500ml format at a capacity of 22,000 bottles per hour. The installation of Sidel equipment is scheduled to start in May 2014, with the first saleable products to be coming off the new bottling line in early July 2014.

“The quality and safety of our beverages are our highest priority, which is why packaging is so vital. At the same time as protecting the liquid, we want our bottles to stay attractive across the supply chain and on the supermarket shelf, and offer a good consumer experience thereafter,” said Costin Barbu, Engineering Director at Coca Cola HBC. “We therefore work with partners like Sidel to drive innovation and identify new ways to improve packaging that creates value for us and our consumers.”

Coca Cola HBC operates in Nigeria through its affiliate, the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), one of the biggest companies in the non-alcoholic drinks industry and the sole franchise bottler for the Coca-Cola Company in the country. NBC operates 13 plants throughout Nigeria, serving as many as 160 million people. Its plant in Ikeja, the suburb in the state capital, Lagos, has been running since 1978.

“Coca-Cola has been present in Nigeria for years, over which it built strong distribution network and developed aggressive marketing techniques which positioned the company to lead shares in carbonated and bottled water. Rising disposable income and population growth will continue to underpin the positive development of the entire market, while new launches, marketing activities and improvements in distribution will bolster demand in individual categories,” said Olivier Fraisse, Regional Commercial Director in Africa, Sidel. “Nigeria is one of our biggest markets in the Greater Middle East and Africa Zone, and we are very delighted to be selected as a solution supplier for this strategic project in Ikeja plant.”

The outlook for the soft drinks market is very encouraging in Nigeria, and looks set to continue to grow, with all major categories showing the potential for robust growth in both total volume and current value sales.

Apart from the Nigerian project, Sidel has won two other contracts from the Coca-Cola HBC in Russia (Moscow) and Belarus (Minsk).In Russia, Sidel will be installing a new line for the production of carbonated soft drinks in 500ml and 1,500ml formats.In Belarus, the Coca-Cola HBC took delivery of Sidel equipment for its plant in Minsk and the line is now in full production.

Sidel has production sites in 13 countries and 30,000 machines installed in more than 190 countries across the world, making it one of the largest worldwide. With over 5,500 employees worldwide, the company provides optimal PET packaging solutions for water, soft drinks, milk, sensitive products (Juice and Nectars), edible oils and alcoholic beverages including beer. It offers customers flexible and reliable production systems that are easily adaptable to market developments and future technology, supported by value-added services.

The operations of the Coca-Cola Hellenic Group span 28 countries, serving more than 581 million people. The group’s holding company, Coca-Cola HBC AG, is headquartered in Switzerland and has a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange as well as secondary listings on the Athens and New York stock exchanges.

•Source: African Media Agency (AMA).

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