Listed beverage maker Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines Inc. will invest close to P4 billion this year to aggressively expand production and distribution capacities to meet surging local demand and as it taps export markets.

President Partho Chakrabati told reporters that half of the $ 100 million capital expenditure will be earmarked for selling and distribution infrastructures while the other half for setting-up manufacturing facilities.

Chakrabati said they will put up four more new manufacturing lines that will employ an additional 1,200 workers.

One line will be opened in existing plant in Muntinlupa City next month and one each in Cebu and Davao plants in August. Pepsi-Cola will also open its 12th manufacturing facility in Santo Tomas, Batangas early next year, he said.

“There are over one million sari-sari stores in the country today, and we are just in half of them. Our objective is to get as many of them as possible,” he noted.

To meet the surging demand for beverages, Chakrabati said the company is targeting to expand its distribution network by 12 percent this year. It now serves more than 500,000 outlets.

He identified distribution expansion and new product offerings as the main drivers of the company’s growth this year.

“There will be more products coming,” Chakrabati added without elaborating. “The Philippines has 100 million population so we wanted to make sure that we sell to 100 million people in this country.”

He noted that there are still underserved areas that have high growth potentials, citing Cagayan Valley and General Santos City.

Chakrabati was also optimistic that the 7.8-percent Philippine economic growth in the first quarter of 2013, one of the highest in Asia during the period, will result in very strong consumption.

Apart from serving the huge Philippine market, he bared that Pepsi-Cola is eyeing to export Tropicana Coco Quench, the first locally-produced and marketed coconut water.

“We’re taking that outside to many countries... There are already a lot of inquiries from neighboring countries. I have one from Malaysia; Korea is interested and a lot more,” he said.

Chakrabati said they are aiming for a double-digit growth in the next few years.

PCPPI, the exclusive distributor bottler of PepsiCo beverages in the country, booked a profit of P270 million in the first quarter of 2013, up by 20 percent from P225 million last year. Its gross revenues also rose 14 percent from P5.26 billion to P6 billion.

The company manufactures and sells well-known brands such as Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, 7-Up, Mirinda, Mug, Gatorade, Tropicana, Lipton, Sting and Premier.*PNA

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