Hong Kong-based company, Swire Pacific, has reached an agreement to acquire Coca-Cola bottling businesses in Vietnam and Cambodia.

The deal was handled through Swire Pacific’s subsidiary, Swire Coca-Cola Limited. According to Reuters, Swire will pay $1.02 billion in cash for the assets.

The transaction will see Swire own and operate Coca-Cola Beverages Vietnam, which has three bottling facilities, and Cambodia Beverage Company, which has one bottling site. The company says that, upon completion of the acquisition, Swire Coca-Cola’s franchise population will expand by 15% to 876 million.

Patrick Healy, chairman of Swire Coca-Cola, said: “This acquisition marks a major milestone for Swire Coca-Cola, significantly expanding our operating footprint and population served to a new region. We have been investing in building a world-class bottling system over the past 57 years. This expansion of territories is part of a broader strategy to expand the global scale, volume and revenues of our bottling business.”

Karen So, MD of Swire Coca-Cola, added: “As a long-term strategic partner with Coca-Cola, we are delighted to be expanding our relationship through this acquisition and excited by the enormous growth potential of the non-alcoholic beverage markets in Vietnam and Cambodia, which are valued at over US$6 billion and forecast to grow at over 6% CAGR until 2036. With our successful refranchising experience in the USA and Chinese Mainland between 2014 and 2017, I am confident that our continuous commitment to excellence will help capture the opportunities that these dynamic markets will bring.”

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