Varun Beverages, Pepsi Cola’s Indian bottler, plans to invest $50 million to build a new beverage production plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The plant will be built within the Special Economic Zone (ZES) of Kiswishi City, in Lumumbashi.

Spanning 15 hectares, the facilitate aims to leverage the logistical advantages of the Likasi road for shipping products to consumers in Lubumbashi and the surrounding region. This is Varun's second major investment in the DRC. It previously built a plant in the Maluku Special Economic Zone, near Kinshasa, the capital. This other project produces 1.2 million bottles per day.

"Varun's expansion will meet the growing demand for Pepsi beverages in the DRC and support our long-term growth trajectory in Africa," said Ravi Kant Jaipuria, president of Varun Beverages.

With the new project, Varun wants to helps boost the DRC’s agri-food industry and tap into the potential of the Congolese market. The country's youth population, which makes up 60% of the total population, offers a large consumer base for soft drinks.

Besides the DRC, Varun Beverages operates in Zimbabwe and Zambia and holds franchise rights for various PepsiCo products in Morocco.

ES