Coca Cola has expressed an interest in using Sri Lanka as a regional production hub, the Government Information Department revealed.
It said the Asia Pacific chiefs of Coca Cola Company had made their interest known during a meeting with Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake in Colombo on Saturday (14).
President of the Coca Cola Company Asia Pacific Group John Murphy and it’s Executive Vice President Irial Finan told Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake during the meeting, that Sri Lanka could be developed as a production hub to re-export their products to India.
India has the highest demand for Coca Cola products in the South Asian region.
The two Coca Cola executives pointed out that Sri Lanka could benefit from the arrangement by earning huge amounts of foreign exchange, even while generating jobs for the youth.
The use of Sri Lanka’s natural water resources and tea related products to manufacture Coca Cola brands and re-export the final products was also discussed during the meeting on Saturday, the Government Information Department reported.
John Murphy and Irial Finan had expressed concern however, about the stability about the rate of taxation on foreign investment, but said they were happy the government is maintaining cordial relations with foreign investors in the country.
